Northern Prospector 2012-13 by DEL Communications Inc.

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PROSPECTOR 2012-2013

Publications mail agreement #40934510

The annual mining & exploration review

An official publication of the Manitoba-Saskatchewan Prospectors and Developers Association

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is published by DEL Communications Inc. Suite 300, 6 Roslyn Road Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada R3L 0G5 www.delcommunications.com

Contents table of

The Annual Mining & Exploration Review

President’s Message 6 A Tribute to Bruce Murray 11

In The Rough — Mining industry buzzed about new sonic diamond core 96

Manitoba 2012 Exploration and Development Highlights 14

Fortis Mining, Engineering & Manufacturing 98

Rock On — Over 3,000 explore Manitoba Rocks! at The Forks 22

How Does Your Ice Measure Up? — Big Ice Flood Pumps 100

Saskatchewan 2012 Exploration and Development Highlights 26

Go Hard — Argo/OntarioDrive & Gear Ltd. 102

Advertising Account Manager ROSS JAMES ross@delcommunications.com

Mining Means Investing in Saskatchewan —A message from the Saskatchewan Mining Association (SMA) 36

Customer Commitment Drives Sales — United Personnel Carriers 106

Production services provided by: S.G. BENNETT MARKETING SERVICES www.sgbennett.com

From The Ground Up — Saskatchewan’s potash mining industry 40

Working For You — Saskatchewan Research Council 108

Joining the Legacy — Germany’s K+S Group 45

Specialized in Saskatchewan — March Consulting Associates Inc. 110

President & CEO DAVID LANGSTAFF Publisher JASON STEFANIK Managing Editor CARLY PETERS carlypeters@mts.net Advertising Sales Manager DAYNA OULION

Art Director / Design KATHY CABLE Advertising Art REANNE DAWSON DANA JENSEN JULIE WEAVER ©Copyright 2012. Northern Prospector. All rights reserved. The contents of this publication may not be reproduced by any means, in whole or in part, without the prior written consent of the publisher. The Manitoba-Saskatchewan Prospectors and Devel opers Association, as a body of members, is not responsible for statements made or the opinions offered in the publication. While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained, and the reliability of the source, neither the publisher nor the association in any way guarantees nor warrants the information, and are not responsible for errors, omissions or forward-looking statements made by advertisers. Opinions and recommendations made by contributors or advertisers are not necessarily those of the publisher or the association, or the ir respective directors, officers or employees. Articles and advertisements in this publication are not solicitations to buy, hold or sell specific securities; they are for information purposes only. Investors should be aware that risk is associated with any security, strategy or investment, and are advised to seek the counsel of a competent investment advi sor before making any investment, or utilizing any information contained in this publication. Subscription, advertising and circulation can be obtained from the publisher. Publications mail agreement #40934510 Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: DEL Communications Inc. Suite 300, 6 Roslyn Road Winnipeg, MB R3L 0G5 Email: david@delcommunications.com

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Growing People — Expansions are creating job opportunities at PotashCorp 48 Global Leader, Local Expertise — SNC-Lavalin Global Mining and Metallurgy 52 Sparkling Future — The Fort a la Corne area 55 No Where But Up — The La Ronge Gold Belt region 58 Another Rush — Gold mining is in Lynn Lake 60

Make an Impact — Mine Site Technologies 104

In Good Spirits — Spirit Staffing & Consulting Brandon Inc. 112 Build You Up — AECOM 113 Arctic Pioneer — Keewatin Air 114 Crystal Clear — H2O Innovations 116 Got You Covered — BRITESPAN Building Systems 118

Up and Coming — Thompson is becoming a strategic transportation hub 62

SGH and OSG — Superheroes in the fight to find mines 120

Preparing for the Boom — Snow Lake 64

Technosub — The fastest way to effective mining dewatering solutions 122

A Change in Plans — VMS Ventures 67 Teaming Up — Joint Venture Agreements 70 Copper Reef Mining Corporation — Focusing on four major gold projects 72 Where Road, Railway, and Airports End — Wings Over Kississing 76 Inhale – Exhale — Breathable air in an underground mine environment 78 Port of Churchill — Investing in resources, people, and supply chains 81 On The Level — Pajari Instruments Ltd. 82

Savvy Solutions — BESTECH 124 Find Your Niche — Shaw Tools 126 Superior Comfort, Safety, and Service — Falcon Performance Footwear 128 Invention, Innovation, Improvisation — CanDig Inc. 129 Past and Present — MSA 130 Solid Gold — NRB Modular Building Specialists 132

Meet The Application — Power & Mine Supply Co. Ltd. 83

Help Me Choose My Safety Glasses — The Saskatchewan Association of Optometrists 135

Give Me Shelter — G&B Portable Fabric Buildings 84

Above and Beyond — SkyTEM 136

In The Know — Using a field-portable XRF for uranium exploration 86

On Your Terms — Miller Thomson LLP 138 Create Information Connections — Rockwell Automation 140

Heavy Metal — Butler ManufacturingTM 88 Large Scale — Cementation Canada 90 Ride The Powertrain — Bull Powertrain 92 Get Tight — McCann Equipment Ltd. 95

Quality Materials Build Quality Buildings — Horizon Structures 142 Have it in the Box — Tigerdale Enterprises Ltd. 144

PRINTED IN CANADA 11/2012

2012-2013 Northern Prospector

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

Majors Expanding – Junior Companies Experiencing Hard Times Stephen L. Masson, M.Sc., P.Geo.

President of the Manitoba-Saskatchewan Prospectors and Developers Association

The Bad News This year has seen a huge fall off of exploration by junior exploration companies across the country. Metal prices have remained relatively strong with only moderate declines in base metals. This has made mining producers cash rich and quite able to carry out continued exploration at high levels. In contrast juniors have been devastated by the down turn of the economy in Europe and America, which has made investors in the west very risk adverse. The result is that risk capital for the much more risky junior market has basically all but dried up. Over the last year juniors continuing to take advantage of flow-through funds to maintain their exploration levels has resulted in the issuing of many more shares at much lower prices to raise the same amount of money. This has significantly increased the amount of share float in junior companies and driven their share price to all time lows as investors dumped these shares in exchange for less risky investments or simply held onto their cash. For the most part larger producers, cashed up from sales of metals at higher prices, have been able to expand their operations. Many senior mining companies have used this cash to acquire smaller producers or gobbled up resource rich properties from cash strapped juniors. This has been a great acquisition environment for producers. Lower nickel prices of late have somewhat affected nickel producers, as has the fall of the uranium price due to the “fallout” effect of the Japanese nuclear event. Potash in Saskatchewan has seen growth with a number of new possible producers to come on stream even though the demand level has abated of late due to the global slowdown. The drying up of exploration capital has seen many Manitoba and Saskatch6

2012-2013 Northern Prospector

ewan junior companies switch or concentrate their focus on gold or other precious metals, where gold and silver prices have remained at all time high levels. Many juniors, saw their share price continue to dwindle down as investors fled from junior stocks despite the release of good intersections and outlined resources. With the sell-off of junior mining stocks, and plummeting share prices many juniors with a share price below five cents and capitalization levels well above 100 million shares, have had to roll back their stocks (10 or 20 to one) in order to raise enough funds just to stay alive. There is a high likelihood that a significant number of juniors will not survive this down turn and will be delisted from the TSX-V exchange as the costs for running junior public companies continue to escalate. The alternative of course is to merge, provided the junior is seen as having something to offer. Those juniors that did managed to cash up previous to the market collapse have significantly curtailed their discretionary and exploration spending in anticipation of a sustained drought. Juniors who have significant resources and could possibly be looking forward to joining the ranks of small Manitoba gold producers, such as QMX Gold Corporation (New Britannia Mine), Auriga (Puffy Lake Mine), and Satori (Tartan Gold Mine), continue to struggle to put together startup capital which has increasingly been more difficult to raise given lower share prices, higher building and labour costs, especially as flow through funds cannot be used for these purposes. The overall effect has been a significant reduction in exploration by the junior sector which will not only see a fall off on the discovery rate but also likely to see a decrease in the number of junior

companies as they hit the financial wall. Some may see this as a good thing. Not just the juniors are affected but the overall exploration economy is struggling; as many exploration drill companies struggle to survive with fewer and fewer contracts available, less feed for analytical labs, fewer geophysical surveys required, and the declining work available for explorationists as juniors and their suppliers significantly downsize.

Some Good News In Manitoba cash rich producers in gold and base metal have continued high rates of exploration, as well as the development of two high profile deposits at the Reed Copper Project (Hudbay & VMS) and Lalor (Hudbay) in the Reed Lake – Snow Lake Camp. This has boosted exploration in the Snow Lake Camp as well as revitalized the nearby communities of Snow Lake and Flin Flon. The shutdown of the Trout Lake mine, however, will eventually result in a requirement for additional feed for the Flin Flon Mill. To meet this, new deposits will be required soon, as Triple 7, HudBay’s single remaining mine in the Main Camp, has a finite life. Junior base metal exploration, previously at relatively high levels over the last few years, has quieted as funds tightened, despite some encouraging results by VMS Exploration and Rockcliff Resources. Callinan’s Pine Bay Copper-Zinc Property and Copper Reef ’s stable of base metal properties and deposits in the main Flin Flon Camp offer high level base metal targets for exploration and discovery to possibly meet this need for additional feed to the Flin Flon complex. In the Hanson Lake Camp in Saskatchewan, Foran carried out significant exploration this past year; with Foran increasing the total indicated and inferred resources of copper,

Copper Reef Mining Corporation Four Major Gold Projects Located in the Flin Flon-Snow Lake Greenstone Belt Symbol: CZC: CNSX

Issued & Outstanding

106,821,300

www.copperreef.com

Copper Reef Mining Corporation headquartered in Flin Flon, Manitoba has four fully-owned gold projects. Among the gold projects one is currently being explored. All these four properties: the Albertâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Lake, North Star, Gold Rock, and Otter Lake are located in the Flin Flon Greenstone Belt.

Otter Lake Gold Property The Otter Lake Gold group of claims is located 6 km northwest of the town of Cranberry Portage and 20 km south of Flin Flon, Manitoba. It consists of three main quartz veins carrying up to 3.33 ounces of Au and 13.9 ounces of Ag.

North Star Gold Property

Gold Rock Property Gold Rock Drillhole Map with Mineralized Intercepts 2010 Selected Drillholes from Gold Rock 2010 Winter Drilling Hole #

Au (g/t)

Length (m)

From (m)

To (m)

GR-10-114

14.41

3.3

23.0

26.3

GR-10-115

15.65

1.5

65.0

66.5

GR-10-119

7.79

2.1

114.3

116.4

16.31

0.9

119.2

120.1

GR-10-122

2.94

3.65

249.05

249.45

GR-10-125

7.01

2.3

143.4

145.7

Albertâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Lake Gold Property Grab Samples from the Parres Vein Sample #

Au (g/t)

Ag (g/t)

Pb (%)

539410

7.17

39.6

0.13

539401

0.83

6.8

0.11

539402

33.9

165.1

0.59

539403

33.89

179.3

1.86

From (m)

To (m)

Interval

Au (g/t)

539404

49.5

245.7

AL-11-61BTW

Average

253.2

304.7

51.5

1.02

2.4

539405

114.2

477

0.64

AL-11-40TW

Average

219.7

250.6

30.9

1.39

2.3

539406

46.61

357.1

0.32

AL-11-57TW

539407

24.61

140

0.65

539408

3.1

5.3

0.01

539409

<.03

1.5

Four twin holes from 2011 drilling program confirmed previous drill results on the Alberts Lake Gold Zone. (non 43-101 Resource of 400,000 tn. of 7 g/t Au). Results presented in the table below

AL-11-72TW

Ag (g/t)

Average

178.5

206.4

27.9

3.46

9.1

Includes

193.03

205.4

12.37

6.74

18.1

Average

198.1

224.5

26.4

1.14

2.2

Includes

212.1

213.95

1.85

4.55

7.1

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE zinc, silver and gold at McIlvenna Bay to over 22,000,000 tonnes announced previous to the latest round of drilling. Foran is continuing to advance the project and have reported they will spend an additional five million on exploration and other studies. In the Rusty Lake Belt, Canalaska has acquired a significant property holding east of the former Ruttan Mine where it plans to carry out exploration next year. Gold hovering between $1,700 and $1,800 (U.S.) an ounce this year has focused most juniors to concentrate on gold exploration although with smaller treasuries. Aside from successes of San Gold and others in the Rice Lake Belt, most of this work in Manitoba has been concentrated in the Flin Flon Greenstone Belt and Lynn Lake Belts and in particular to determine if previous mines such as Tartan, Puffy, New Britannia, Gurney Property, MacLellan Mine (Lynn Lake), can be restarted, although with almost all of them startup capital remains problematic. BacTech Environmental Corporation is continuing plans on building North America’s first bioleach plant in Snow Lake in 2013 to treat the New Britannia tailings. Copper Reef is planning further drilling of its North Star and Gold Rock deposits north of Reed Lake as well as Alberts Lake and Otter Lake. Claude Resources aside from its large Seabee Mine is continuing with plans to develop the Laurel Lake Deposit in the Amisk Lake area of Saskatchewan, west of Flin Flon.

The Real Bad News The real bad news in Manitoba on top of the almost non-existent risk capital for junior exploration is the problems associated with obtaining permits for exploration in a timely manner, especially but not exclusively outside the main mining camps for more frontier exploration. The Sherridon camp is basically shut down. Many juniors have waited years and still do not have a permit, or the permit has taken so long that Juniors had to spend their flow through funds elsewhere to meet Revenue Canada’s timelines so that investors could receive the tax benefit promised. It has reached a state now that even Vale-Inco will not explore outside their main mining lease areas. Junior min8

2012-2013 Northern Prospector

ers have packed up and left the province. One in six applications for exploration are not approved or in limbo and that ratio narrows for projects outside the main camps. The problem is the requirement of First Nations to sign off in areas of their traditional lands. The First Nation’s position centres around revenue sharing on the development of a mine and the derivation of social-economic benefits to their communities. The province has not dealt with this squarely or given it the necessary attention required to reach a formula that will address the concerns of First Nation communities and provincial revenue without leaving the exploration company caught in the middle. To some extent it is education on both sides about what constitutes exploration which is fraught with risk and low impact and the development of a mine which has a higher impact but is actually a rare event in the context of total targets explored and all variations in-between. Unlike Saskatchewan where they have very good pro-rated timelines depending on levels of exploration activities, Manitoba has none. Most juniors cannot afford to finance the number of meetings and negotiations or legal agreements needed just to drill off a few geophysical targets that may not represent any economic mineralization at all. This is the high risk stage with the lowest probability of discovery. Further, most juniors cannot afford not to delay the spending of flow through funds without incurring large tax penalties to their shareholders just because a permit is not issued. It does not matter who is to blame for this impasse, it must be fixed or juniors will find jurisdictions where they can more easily explore. The market wants results and if a junior cannot explore, there can be only negative results. The failure to solve this issue is driving many Juniors out of the province and strongly curtailing even the areas a producer can explore. Those Juniors who have chosen to stay have begun to look elsewhere to cushion their risk. If this issue of permitting was not bad enough coupled with a lack of risk capital for the junior exploration sector, Manitoba continues unabated to sterilize more land in its preoccupation with creating more and more parks regardless

of high to moderate mineral potential than any other jurisdiction in Canada. Over 20 per cent of land has been withdrawn from exploration and much more is planned. Manitoba has removed almost in its entirety the area of highest diamond potential in the province and has plans to remove a greenstone belt south of The Pas the size of the Flin Flon Belt which has generated billions of dollars. Such policies of sterilization and lack of dealing with permitting is fast creating Manitoba as one of the most unfriendly areas to explore despite its enormous mineral potential. Large areas of the province are now not being explored at all.

Saskatchewan In contrast to Manitoba, Saskatchewan is booming with new Potash mines in the works, as well as its stable uranium exploration by Cameco and others. Claude Resources (Seabee Mine), Golden Band, and La Ronge Gold Corp. in the La Ronge Belt continue to expand their resources. Base metals has had a strong push by Foran Mining and Hudbay. Saskatchewan is certainly open to exploration and continues to see record activity. The shear wealth created by mining in Saskatchewan has placed this province in an enviable position. The province has few issues with land use and permits as they have very good pro-rated timelines depending on levels of exploration activities. Saskatchewan also has taken a reasonable approach so that protected areas do not encroach on areas of high-mineral potential so that the economy is not jeopardized by locating parks in areas that mineral discoveries may occur. We however have two criticisms of Saskatchewan. First is their obsession with restoring drill roads, especially if that road will be used subsequently for further exploration. The extent of restoration required is biased against mining exploration whereas forestry and hydro do not appear to have to meet the same standards. For a junior exploration company, especially in areas that will see continued exploration, this is an unnecessary burden given the funds Juniors have at their disposal. The second is with all this great wealth the province is receiving

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PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE from mining they are failing to reinvest enough back into their geological survey branch for field mapping and research, as well as their mines branch. Manitoba has this same problem. Saskatchewan has announced they will go to map staking this December. Is there hope for the Prospector, Project Generator, or Junior Company? There are signs that the tide may be turning. Europe appears they may be getting their act together, even the U.S. appears to be having sober thoughts on cutting their spending and things may stabilize after the American election. However consumer debt and government debt are still not being seriously addressed so on that note I am cautious as are others which will likely keep the gold price high as governments choose to just print more money. It now appears that China and Asian economies will do better this year, after a minor set back (all is relative), increasing demand for metals so overall mining producers should remain strong. Juniors will likely still lag behind as large funds are still shy from the haircut they took last year in Junior stocks. This reluctance towards risky investment will not be easily overturned despite cashed up investors. Still the bargain hunters will be out there and private funds should see Juniors with potential for growth receive more attention. Bottom feeders will start to invest in those undervalued small companies where they can get a large position for a modest investment. Juniors with-

out potential or a willingness to reinvent themselves will likely crash and burn and get delisted. Despite the hordes of money out there, the junior market will likely see its first new exploration funds come from selected investors in private placements or from a producer willing to fund an earn in to a project or the company itself. The risk to a producer with cash flow is small. It is a beginning, but that is how it will start. In regards to obtaining timely permits in Manitoba, there has been some indication by government that they are now willing to see if they can address the problem for exploration companies by addressing some of the underlying issues with the First Nation communities. I think this will be a long process with both successes and failures. Our position is we do not recommend exploration in those frontier areas of Manitoba where there is no meeting of the minds between First Nation peoples and government. Do not waste those investment dollars or time in a process, that with certain entities, that may take years or never happen in the timeline that juniors have. This may end up being the death of exploration outside the established mining camps. It is important to the Manitoba government that this issue is dealt with quickly and by people who know what they are doing. It will ultimately determine whether Manitoba is a “have” or “have not” province and whether northern communities will have any economic base.

With the issue of park creation, and especially the Grass River Park, we have a wait and see attitude as to whether the province cares more about whether areas, which are not threatened, need the further protection of a park just to get the green vote, or that there is a real interest in a vibrant mining economy with high paying jobs. Ultimately someone has to pay the taxes. Unnecessary protection by the park method will be a drain on revenue without employment opportunities for youth or the development of skill sets for northern communities. In this area I have not witness at all any significant policy change. Perhaps the greatest good news is that both Saskatchewan and Manitoba have a very high mineral potential that is under explored compared to other Canadian jurisdictions with good infrastructure. All we need is the ability to explore it in a timely manner. For the prospector and project generator, this is a great time to acquire properties that cash strapped juniors will let slide especially if their exodus continues. Majors are cash rich and are looking for targets. Do your homework.

Remembrance We in our association would like to recognize the passing Bruce Murray, a true prospector and renowned diamond driller who came from a famous family of prospectors. An article of dedication on Bruce can be found on page 11. 6

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MEMBER TRIBUTE BRUCE MURRAY

A Tribute to Bruce Murray By Stephen Masson Photo at left: Bruce Murray (right) and Warren Heidman (centre) flying out to stake claims.

ruce Murray was one of the last old time prospectors of northern Manitoba and Saskatchewan. He was well respected by his colleagues in the industry where he had a long history of prospecting and diamond drilling both underground and surface. Bruce came from a family of prospectors which included his brothers Brian and Richard (Ray-Dor Resources), as well as his father Jack Murray, and on his mother’s side his grandfather Billy Baker. From this legacy Bruce gained his experience. Bruce’s father Jack Murray, who was a strong, tough, fiercely independent man, was famous in his own right having discovered numerous copper and gold deposits such as Vamp Lake and others. From him, Bruce learned his prospecting skill, as well as his tough independent, but honest character. Even in his later

(Left) Brian and Richard Murray, and Bruce looking at Wildnest Core from Saskatchewan with Peter Dasler and Stephen Masson.

Photo above: Bruce at the Manitoba Mining Convention displaying a copper nickel prospect.

years, working underground at the Trout Lake, Callinan, and Triple Seven mines of Hudbay Minerals, Bruce’s knowledge and experience made him invaluable in recognizing alteration and ore minerals which aided company geologists in chasing down ore lenses underground. Bruce had a reputation of being able to visually estimate the grade of copper or zinc in drill core within a ½ to one per cent of its assay value. Bruce’s grandfather, Billy Baker, along with his prospecting partner John Patton, were renown prospectors in the mining camps of Flin Flon, Snow Lake, Sherridon and Lynn Lake as well the more remote wilderness areas. Through his prospecting family and their friends, Bruce heard the stories of prospectors and their discoveries, lost showings of gold, and old workings. Much of what was handed down to Bruce sitting by the light of a kerosene lamp in a tent or around a camp fire on the mining claims. During freeze-up, and especially break-up when travel was difficult in the bush, it was time to pour over old maps and reports, planning the summer prospecting or winters geophysical surveys and drilling. It was here that enthusiasm ran high and hope was truly eternal. Looking for any clue others had missed or checking out new geological maps of the area for just a few more pieces of the puzzle to build a better treasure map. Many a pot of coffee was set to perk as theories and old recollections were knitted together in the plan of a new adventure. There were no shortage of stories and most had some truth. These stories Bruce would retell and retell and in so doing re-infect the story teller himself with his own enthusiasm, as well as the listener until yet another excursion was in the planning or a grubstake provided. 2012-2013 Northern Prospector 11

MEMBER TRIBUTE BRUCE MURRAY

John (Jack) Murray and Lee Gordon at the Vamp Lake discovery.

Bruce also had a knack for selling his claims, and this came from his deep experience and knowledge not only of his particular prospect, but from his understanding of the larger setting and its history. He could weave together quite a convincing story. His stories had both flare and merit, but he also had the credibility that comes from boots on the ground and fresh samples. Bruce was as much at home in a tent or small trapper’s cabin as he was at his house where samples from his excursions littered his grounds. His newest samples were always closer to the door. His latest prospecting adventures were often secret as he like to prospect open ground and stake it later if he found something of interest. One of Bruce’s great claims to fame was the speed at which he could travel through the woods especially when staking a claim. He had the heart of a moose. Bruce was a solitary prospector most of time and would often return home much after dark, which in the summer was quite late. His wife, Edna, would worry in these late hours. It was his character and his love to wander the wilderness by himself and his dog searching ever searching for mineral, but also taking in all that solitude had to offer, its animals, the forest, the creeks and rivers, and the changing seasons. This was his fun, where he felt most alive. I have seen him return packsack filled to the brim from a new showing wet and cold, perhaps that day a little less fun, but still his smile would surface as he began to tell of his new find. Bruce was born in The Pas and raised in Flin Flon Manitoba. In his early days he worked mainly with his father. He later worked in a coal mine in B.C., but returned to Flin Flon after being trapped in a cave-in. In Flin Flon he started with Amisk Diamond Drilling on exploration plays; later working his later years up to his death with Major Drilling and Hudbay Mines in Flin Flon. During this period Bruce prospected on weekends, holidays, or any other time off when he was not hunting and fishing. His very favourite prospecting area was around Lake Athapapuskow from Cranberry to Kisseynew or up the Cranberry Chain to Elbow Lake. 12 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

Billy Baker and John Pattons’ prospector cabin at Bakers Narrows

All of us at the Manitoba – Saskatchewan Prospectors and Developers Association are truly saddened by Bruce’s untimely and sudden death on July 18, 2012. He was helpful, encouraging, optimistic, and honest. To his friends and family he was known for his generosity and kindness. In his many years he developed many close friendships. He was greatly respected by his colleagues at Major Drilling for his abilities, especially with deep underground holes, and to all explorationists who knew him for his innate ability to find new mineralization or re-discover some mineral showing that had been lost over time. He knew the old timers, and spoke about them and their stories often. Younger exploration people sought his expertise and sourced his memory of old prospects and drill holes. Bruce loved all outdoor activities, including fishing, where he would fish his favourite lakes along the Sherridon Road, but his favourite lake of all was Nesosap. This is where he would spend with his boys who he constantly spoke about on their annual fishing trip where they spent summer after summer catching fish and telling stories. Ironically, it was this lake where Bruce lost his life in a drowning accident. He was alone, had caught his full limit of fish and was almost back where he would dock his canoe. It was a beautiful summer day, and many of us believe that if you must depart this earth, then when better, on your favourite lake with a full catch in hand, doing what you love most. Bruce died as he lived in full stride in his beloved wilderness. Those that remember Bruce remember his laughter, his jokes, his unshakable optimism and his kindness. Rough and tough as Bruce could be, and he was, he had a kind heart where his family was everything, wife Edna of 34-years, his three boys and their wives and grandchildren. Bruce was truly a remarkable man and dear friend. We of our association along with many others shall truly miss him and we shall not forget the legacy he left or the good personal times we shared with him and his family. 6

MANITOBA EXPLORATION HIGHLIGHTS

Manitoba 2012 Exploration and Development Highlights

Current as of October 1, 2012

Base and precious metals by Chris Beaumont-Smith, Minerals Policy and Business Development; specialty/industrial minerals by Jim Bamburak, Manitoba Geological Survey, Manitoba Innovation, Energy and Mines

he present state of Manitoba’s mining sector reflects robust production growth and advanced exploration tempered by declines in grassroots exploration due to challenges associated with difficult equity markets. The sector’s modest recovery in 2011 is being undermined by recent global economic uncertainty and a more challenging investment climate. The resulting weakness in commodity prices coupled with difficulty securing venture capital is forcing many companies to revise their operational plans. Exploration and deposit appraisal expenditures totalled $110.5 million for 2011, a 32 per cent increase from 2010, and were projected to

increase again in 2012 to $125.6 million before the mid-year change in the global economic outlook. In spite of difficulties in grassroots exploration, capital investment in mine development is at an all-time high. This reflects the considerable exploration successes of Manitoba explorers through the past commodity cycle as well as continued strength in precious metals commodity prices.

Base Metals Base-metal brownfields exploration and development activity remains strong in Manitoba, driven by HudBay Minerals, Inc.’s (Hudbay) significant capital

investments in the Flin Flon–Snow Lake greenstone belt and continued strength in copper pricing. Hudbay continues its historic level of capital investment in their 777 North, Lalor and Reed mine development projects. Hudbay’s board of directors previously approved $20 million for the 777 North expansion, $704 million to construct its wholly-owned Lalor project near Snow Lake, and $71 million for the Reed copper project. These projects coincide with closures of the Trout Lake mine in June and the Chisel North mine, which is transitioning to processing Lalor ore. The company has spent approxi-

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14 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

MB Mining ExplORE Manitoba Publication: Northern Prospector Magazine Ad size: 7” wide x 4 5/8” deep

MANITOBA EXPLORATION HIGHLIGHTS mately $277 million on the Lalor project to June 30, 2012 and has committed an additional $91.4 million for the project. The completion of the main ventilation shaft allowed initial production to start in August and is enabling Hudbay to hoist up to 1500 tonnes of ore and waste per day. The Lalor ore replaces production from the adjacent Chisel North mine and is being processed at the nearby Snow Lake concentrator until completion of the production shaft and new concentrator expected in late 2014. The installation of a new copper circuit at the Snow Lake concentrator to facilitate processing of Lalor ore is currently underway and commissioning was planned for September 2012. The production shaft is currently sunk to the 300 metre level and is 30 per cent complete relative to its planned depth of 985 metres. All other surface infrastructure is essentially complete and underground development is well advanced. The first full year of production from the production shaft is expected in 2015. Planning for the new 4500 tonneper-day concentrator at their Lalor site is progressing on schedule. Basic engineering is nearly complete and HudBay has placed orders for major components required for the mill. Site geotechnical work is complete, and the company is finalizing the final site levelling required for the concentrator footprint. The Indicated base-metal Lalor resource stands at 13.3 million tonnes grading 8.87 per cent zinc with an Inferred resource of 4.8 million tonnes grading 9.25 per cent zinc. The Gold Zone Inferred resource is 5.4 million tonnes grading 4.7 grams per tonne gold. Conceptual estimates indicate the potential for an additional 5.1 to 6.1 million tonnes grading between 4.3 and 5.1 grams per tonne for the Gold Zone and an additional 1.8 to 2.2 million tonnes grading 5.8 to 7.0 grams per tonne gold and 3.2 per cent to 4.0 per cent copper for the Copper-Gold Zone. HudBay anticipates additional gold resources will be delineated with further exploration to be conducted from underground, with the Copper-Gold Zone holding the greatest

LEGEND 302B

ZONE B

299B 301B 209B 300B

54M

64P

64O CHIPEWYAN

236B

Mineral Exploration Licence Mining Claim / Mineral Lease Mining Restricted

247B

Zone A Mineral Exploration Licence Zones Zone B ( Revised Manitoba Regulation 64/92)

Northlands Consultation Area

166B

148B

64J

Churchill

Fox Lake First Nation Seasonal Land Use Area

298B 408B278B 961B

Tadoule

960B

Lac Brochet

363B

64K Brochet

64G

64H

Lynn Lake

South Indian Lake

CLAIM STAKING ONLY 64C

LIMESTONE

54E

354B !

991A

64B

Granville Lake

990A

993A

989A 992A 994A

327B

Split Lake

York Landing Ilford

Kelsey

996A 995A

Gillam

Shamattawa

1008B 389B 1007B

983A

Notigi

Nelson House 985A

Pukatawagon

63N 63N

Cold Lake !!

365A

63O NELSON HOUSE RMA WABOWDEN Wabowden

Snow Lake

PORTAGE

Herb Lake Landing Ponton

331A 268A

999A

390A264A

428A 430A

395A God's River !

391A 1006A

Wanless

Cormorant

422A 423A

410A

53L

987B Moose Lake 988B RMA !Moose Lake

OCN Traditional Use Aea

53E

63H

Moose Lake

St. Theresa Point!

Island Lake

Norway House RMA

997B

ZONE A

320B 986B

Cedar Lake RMA

Norway House

296B

Easterville

Grand Rapids

Asatawisipe Aki Planning Area

Dawson Bay

Powell

National Mills!Baden !

Pelican Rapids

415B

414B

63A

412B

Island 53D Lake RMA

413B

ZONE B 63C

Berens River

346B Duck Bay 334B

998A

340B Camperville Rock RidgeMallard !! Waterhen

Little Grand Rapids RMA !

Dauphin River Princess Harbour

Salt Point

Meadow Portage

Matheson Island

Homebrook

Pine Dock !

Spence Lake ! Crane River

Red Rose ! Fisher Bay !

62N

62O

Dallas

62P

Harwill

Bloodvein RMA

Loon Straits

52M

CLAIM STAKING Hollow Water ONLY !

SeymourvilleManigotagan !

Russell

62K

Ericson !

62J

Clanwilliam Bethany

Minnedosa

Glenella !

62J

52L

62I

Ogilvie

Gladstone Woodside ! Westbourne

Portage la Prairie Brandon !

Winnipeg

Carroll

62H

Tilston Broomhill

Rennie

52E

Pierson

! Melita !

Medora

Lyleton !

Coulter!Dalny ! ! ! Waskada

418A

328A

Morden ! Winkler

Index Map 2A Mineral Exploration Licences

potential to add significant resources to the project. During the second quarter of 2012, Hudbayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s focus for its 70 per cent owned Reed copper project was preparation of the site for portal development. The project is on schedule as Hudbay commenced the trench excavation in June 2012. Hudbay has also completed the site levelling for the mechanical shop and warehouse office, changehouse and parking lot pads, as well as camp expansions

53K

Red Sucker Lake

ISLAND LAKE

397A

297B

982A

1004A

1003A

425A

The Pas

417A 396A

63I

1001A

420B !

Gods Lake Narrows

262A

1002A

426A

Gods Lake

Cross Lake

1000A

63F

GOD'S LAKE

323A

269A

424A270A

981A 361A 360A358A

Westgate

1009A

1005A Oxford House 427A

HOLDER 4920776 MANIT OBA LT D. 4920776 MANIT OBA LT D. 53O ALT O VENT URES LT D. ALT O VENT URES LT D. ALT O VENT URES LT D. AURIGA GOLD CORP. AURIGA GOLD CORP. AURIGA GOLD CORP. 53NAURIGA GOLD CORP. AURIGA GOLD CORP. CANALASKA URANIUM LT D. CANALASKA URANIUM LT D. CANALASKA URANIUM LT D. CANALASKA URANIUM LT D. CANALASKA URANIUM LT D. CANALASKA URANIUM LT D. CANALASKA URANIUM LT D. CANALASKA URANIUM LT D. CAT HERINE E ENT ERPRISES CAT HERINE E ENT ERPRISES Callinex Mines Inc. Canada Bay Resources Ltd. FIRST LIT HIUM RESOURCES INC. Fontaine, Garry GOSSAN RESOURCES LIMIT ED GOSSAN RESOURCES LIMIT ED GOSSAN RESOURCES LIMIT ED HAROLD WEST DAL HUDSON BAY EXPLORAT ION AND DEVELOPMENT HUDSON BAY EXPLORAT ION AND DEVELOPMENT HUDSON BAY EXPLORAT ION AND DEVELOPMENT HUDSON BAY EXPLORAT ION AND DEVELOPMENT HUDSON BAY EXPLORAT ION AND DEVELOPMENT INT ERNAT IONAL SAMUEL HOLDING CORP. INT ERNAT IONAL SAMUEL HOLDING CORP. MANIT OR MINERALS INC. MANIT OR MINERALS INC. MANIT OR MINERALS INC. MANIT OR MINERALS INC. MANIT OR MINERALS INC. MARK FEDIKOW MURGOR RESOURCES INC. MURGOR RESOURCES INC. MURGOR RESOURCES INC. MURGOR RESOURCES INC. NORT H AMERICAN NICKEL INC. NORT H AMERICAN NICKEL INC. NORT H AMERICAN NICKEL INC. NORT H AMERICAN NICKEL INC. NORT H AMERICAN NICKEL INC. NORT H AMERICAN NICKEL INC. NORT H AMERICAN NICKEL INC. NORT H AMERICAN NICKEL INC. NORT H AMERICAN NICKEL INC. NUINSCO RESOURCES LIMIT ED PEREGRINE DIAMONDS LIMIT ED PUMA EXPLORAT ION PURE N ICKEL INC. Qmc Quantum Minerals Corp. Qmc Quantum Minerals Corp. Qmc Quantum Minerals Corp. Qmc Quantum Minerals Corp. Qmc Quantum Minerals Corp. Qmc Quantum Minerals Corp. ROLLING ROCK RESOURCES CORPORAT ION ROLLING ROCK RESOURCES CORPORAT ION SHAUN SPELLISCY SHAUN SPELLISCY SHAUN SPELLISCY T AKARA RESOURCES INC. T AKARA RESOURCES INC. T AKARA RESOURCES INC. T ELFERSCOT RESOURCES INC. T IMOT HY WALKER VALE CANADA LIMIT ED VICT ORY NICKEL INC. VMS VENT URES INC. VMS VENT URES INC. VMS VENT URES INC. VMS VENT URES INC. VMS VENT URES INC. W.S. FERREIRA LT D. W.S. FERREIRA LT D. W.S. FERREIRA LT D. W.S. FERREIRA LT D. WHET ST ONE MINERALS INC. WHIT E CAP EXPLORAT ION WHIT E CAP EXPLORAT ION WHIT E CAP EXPLORAT ION WHIT E CAP EXPLORAT ION WHIT E CAP EXPLORAT ION WHIT E CAP EXPLORAT ION WHIT E CAP EXPLORAT ION

SHAMATTAWA

OXFORD HOUSE

63K

Millwater !Cranberry Portage

63P

Cross Lake Trapline Zone

359A

Pikwitonei

53M

400B

Sherridon

CLAIM STAKING ONLY Flin Flon

PIKWITONEI

Thicket Portage THICKET !

380B 381B

Thompson !

984A 984A

54B 367B

Leaf Rapids

PUKATAWAGAN

Fox Lake RMA

54D

64A

416B

York Factory RMA

Fox Lake Seasona l Use Area

85B

SPLIT LAKE RMA

Mc Veigh

Drybrough

Community Interest Zone

54F

SOUTHERN INDIAN LAKE

First Nations Resource Management Area

CHURCHILL

64I

64F

First Nations Traditional Land Use Area

54K

54L

BROCHET

53F

MEL_NUMBER 1005A 427A 430A 1006A 428A 389B 380B 381B 1008B 1007B 302B 247B 236B 166B 209B 300B 301B 299B 323A 1004A 296B 982A 395A 998A 417A 418A 396A 400B 1003A 1001A 262A 1000A 1002A 331A 416B 298B 278B 408B 960B 961B 1009A 420B 425A 423A 422A 320B 992A 994A 995A 993A 989A 990A 991A 996A 363B 85B 426A 297B 981A 999A 361A 359A 360A 358A 328A 391A 997B 987B 988B 985A 984A 983A 354B 986B 365A 397A 264A 268A 270A 390A 269A 327B 424A 367B 410A 148B 334B 340B 413B 415B 414B 412B 346B

to accommodate the workforce for the development stage of the project. Materials and equipment from the recently closed Trout Lake mine have begun arriving at site, and Hudbay has ordered new mobile equipment and compressors for delivery in the third quarter of 2012. Hudbay has also issued tenders for the mechanical shop and warehouse. The company expects initial production at the Reed copper project by the fourth quarter of 2013 and anticipate ramp-up 2012-2013 Northern Prospector 15

MANITOBA EXPLORATION HIGHLIGHTS to full production of approximately 1300 tonnes per day by the first quarter of 2014. The Reed Lake deposit contains a National Instrument (NI) 43-101–compliant Indicated resource estimate of 2.5 million tonnes grading 4.55 per cent copper. HudBay also partnered with Halo Resources Ltd. on the Lost Lake jointventure project in the Sherridon area. HudBay continues to explore the deposit and has started pre-feasibility engineering work. Weakness in nickel prices is having a significant negative effect on production in the province. Vale’s Thompson operations are undergoing a revision of all aspects of the operations including potential capital investments as they transition to a mining and milling facility with the impending closure of the smelter and refinery in 2015. Low nickel price has resulted in CaNickel Mining Ltd. (previously Crowflight Minerals Inc.) temporarily suspending mining operations at the Bucko Lake mine in Wabowden. The mine was placed on care and maintenance in June, but exploration activities continue on their large portfolio of properties in the region. CaNickel has successfully increased the Proven and Probable reserves at Bucko to 3.71 million tonnes of 1.45 per cent and company is also having considerable exploration success on the nearby M11A deposit. Uncertainty in equity markets and weak nickel prices are also presenting challenges to Victory Nickel Inc. Having received an Environment Act licence in 2011authorizing the construction and operation of the Minago project north of Grand Rapids, Victory has been unsuccessful in securing financing for the initial stages of development for the $600 million nickel and frac sand mine. The difficulties presented by weak basemetal commodity prices is not preventing a number of junior explorers from conducting aggressive base-metal exploration programs. Rockcliff Resources Inc. continues to post impressive drill results at their Tow16 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

er VMS property north of Grand Rapids. The joint-venture project with partner Pure Nickel has outline two zones of copper-gold mineralization within rocks of the Thompson Nickel Belt. Initial drilling targeted the T1 zone and returned intercepts grading up to 6.1 per cent copper over 4.9 metres. A deep-penetrating electromagnetic (DPEM) geophysical survey outlined a large down-plunge continuation of the T1 zone and identified two other untested anomalies (T2 and T3). The first follow-up drillhole testing the T2 anomaly returned 2.77 per cent copper over 4.0 metres. The relationship between the two mineralized zones is not yet well understood, although the T1 zone is characterized by mineral textures consistent with remobilization and a lack of associated hostrock alteration, whereas the T2 zone is hosted within a well developed alteration envelope. Diamond-drill testing of the T1 and T2 zones is planned for the winter drill season. Rockcliff was also successful testing geophysical anomalies at the pastproducing Dickstone mine west of Snow Lake. Initial diamond-drilling testing potential deep mineralization returned 2.7 per cent copper over 2.5 metres and follow-up downhole geophysics suggest the mineralization is associated with a large untested anomaly below the existing mine workings. Low nickel prices is not preventing Mustang Minerals Corp. from completing a feasibility study of the Makwa deposit near Lac du Bonnet and exploration work at the nearby Mayville property. The Makwa deposit comprises a NI 43-101-compliant resource of 9.855 million tonnes in the Probable category containing 0.541 per cent nickel, 0.113 per cent copper and 0.433 grams per tonne platinum group metals (PGM). The company purchased the Bouchard Herbert mill near Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec which will be relocated to the Makwa site. The associated reduction in capital costs are being incorporated in the feasibility study expected to be completed in 2012. The Mayville deposit contains a NI

43-101 Indicated resource of 9.227 million tonnes containing 0.61 per cent copper, 0.23 per cent nickel and 0.174 grams per tonne palladium. Mustang believes the Mayville deposit has the potential to host a significant PGM resource. Other nickel exploration projects include Prophecy Resources Corp. and Corazon Mining Ltd. exploring past-producing nickel mines originally operated by Sherritt Gordon Mines in Lynn Lake. Employing advanced exploration techniques and technology, the companies companies have been successful discovering new mineralization and expanding the remaining resources at the Lynn Lake and El mines.

Precious Metals Precious metals exploration and development activities continue to gain momentum, driven by the continued strength in gold and silver commodity prices and improving long-term price outlooks. Gold remains the focus with a considerable increase in exploration and deposit appraisal expenditures, both in the re-evaluation of past-producing gold deposits and increasing greenfield and brownfield exploration. The re-eveluation of past-producers started in the Rice Lake greenstone belt with San Gold Corporation’s purchase of the Rice Lake mine in Bissett from Harmony Gold Inc. San Gold brought the mine back to producer status in 2007 and continues to improve their operational performance. This trend now applies to all past-producing regions of the province. San Gold’s Rice Lake mine provides a sound model for the redevelopment of a past-producing gold mine. San Gold has taken a uneconomic mine with existing infrastructure, but a limited reserve base, and transformed the operation into a profitable gold producer with significantly improved economics due to aggressive exploration and resultant reserve-base expansion. San Gold’s improved operational performance is the result of the exploration success at its Rice Lake and Hinge mines in Bissett. The development of high-grade, near-surface deposits has

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MANITOBA EXPLORATION HIGHLIGHTS allowed San Gold to achieve record production in successive quarters, which has lead to a corresponding increase in operational profit. San Gold has reported record operating margins resulting from a significant decrease in operating expenses in successive quarters and is currently in the midst of a multiyear program to increase production. San Gold produced 85,000 ounces of gold in 2011 and is on pace to produce 100,000 ounces of gold in 2012. The Rice Lake belt remains Manitoba’s pre-eminent gold exploration camp, where efforts are dominated by junior explorers. Although financing remains problematic, a number of exploration companies are active in the region. This includes Bison Gold Resources Inc. on their past-producing Central Manitoba property southeast of Bissett, Wildcat Exploration Ltd, Strikepont Gold, and Harvest Gold. The re-evaluation of past-producing gold mines in the Trans-Hudson Orogen has gained significant momentum in recent years. This region’s large number of past-producing mines and their largely intact infrastructure represent attractive targets for junior gold explorers. The most advanced project in the region is Auriga Gold Corp.’s Maverick gold project south of Sherridon. The cornerstone of the project, the past-producing Puffy Lake underground mine, comprises largely intact surface infrastructure and a NI 43-101–compliant optimized in-pit and underground Indicated resource totalling 174,000 ounces gold and Inferred resource totalling 558,000 ounces. Auriga plans to initiate gold production through a series of shallow open pits and transition to underground mining. This will limit the start-up capital requirement and allow Auriga to redevelop the underground mine from cash flow. Auriga is currently refurbishing the surface infrastructure in anticipation of initial production early in 2013. The Puffy Lake mine produced 28,000 ounces of gold in 1988 and 1989. In the Snow Lake area, QMX Gold (formerly Alexis Minerals Corp) continues to advance the re-opening of the former New Britannia mine. QMX has se18 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

cured a significant portion of the required capital to re-open the renamed Snow Lake mine. A December 2009 feasibility study forecast production of 80,000 to 90,000 ounces of gold per year for a minimum of six years. QMX has conducted an aggressive exploration program since the feasibility study to add additional reserves to the mine with the goal of increasing the mine life and project economics .The New Britannia mine produced 858,000 ounces of gold between 1995 and 2005 and 760,000 ounces of gold between 1949 and 1958 as the Nor Acme mine. The re-evaluation of past-producing gold mines includes a number of mines in the Lynn Lake greenstone belt in the northern Trans-Hudson Orogen. Carlisle Goldfields Limited continues to evaluate a number of deposits that will conceptually feed a regional mill. The centrepiece is the MacLellan Gold mine that contains a NI 43-101–compliant open pit and underground Measured and Indicated resource estimate of 1,035,200 ounces of gold and 9,344,000 ounces of silver. Carlisle holds a significant land position in the Lynn Lake greenstone belt and exploration drilling at the BT mine, which operated between 1994 and 1996, the Farley Lake mine, which operated between 1997 and 2000, the Lasthope deposit, and a number of other deposits along strike from the pastproducers are expected to return sufficient resources to proceed to a feasibility study. The evaluation of other past-producing gold mines in the Trans-Hudson Orogen includes Satori Resources’ Tartan mine east of Flin Flon and Callinex Mines’ Gossan Hill project near Cranberry Portage, which hosts the past-producing Gurney mine. Gold exploration activity is not limited to past-producing deposits located in established greenstone belts, but also includes a number of advanced and grassroots exploration projects located in more frontier regions of the province. The highest profile project is Mega Precious Metals Inc.’s Monument Bay gold project near Red Sucker Lake in northeastern Manitoba.

The Monument Bay project includes the Twin Lakes gold deposit within a large regional exploration property. Mega continues with an aggressive infill and exploration drill program at Twin Lakes and outlined an open pit and underground NI 43-101–compliant Measured and Indicated resource of 1,046,010 ounces of gold grading 2.5 grams per tonne and an Inferred resource of 1,726,674 ounces of gold at 3.78 grams per tonne. Regional exploration on the 6692 hectare Monument Bay property is generating additional resources. The project is scheduled to go to feasibility study in 2014. The success of the Monument Bay project points to the favourable geology of the Archean northern Superior Province southeast of Thompson. This has attracted a number of junior gold explorers, including Gossan Resources Limited, Alto Ventures Ltd., Callinex Mines, Canada Bay Resources and QMC Quantum Minerals Corp. This under-explored accretionary terrane represents the western strike-extension of proven gold-producing geology in Ontario and is viewed by explorers as having the potential to host a number of gold deposits forming a regional camp.

Specialty/Industrial Minerals In March 2012, Westcore Energy Ltd. reported that it had completed 20 additional vertical holes on its 2012 drilling program at its wholly owned Black Diamond and FNR JV Cretaceous Swan River Formation coal properties, located south of The Pas. A total of 2175 m of delineation and exploratory drilling was done on five previous known deposits and on two new geophysical targets, respectively. A NI 43-101 resource report on the results of the delineation drilling was anticipated to be completed in the second quarter of 2012. In early 2012, Saturn Minerals Inc. completed a Fugro airborne gravity survey at its Overflowing property south of The Pas, and immediately to the east of the Westcore Energy properties described above. Seven additional vertical holes were drilled early in 2012, of which 3 intersected the Saturn coal seam in the company’s Karolina Coal Basin. The com-

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MANITOBA EXPLORATION HIGHLIGHTS pany’s third new coal discovery (Thunder Discovery) was drilled in one hole along its 8 km long north-south “Overflowing” geophysical trend. The trend connects several strong anomalies, two of which are the Thunder and Karolina discoveries lying 2 kilometres apart. The Thunder Discovery comprises three thick (3.1–8.6 m) and three thin (1.7–3.0 m) coal seams between the15.0–45.05 m depth in the discovery hole, which was stopped at the 50 m depth due to technical difficulties. Samples were shipped to Loring Laboratories in Calgary for proximate coal analysis, sulphur content and calorific value. The results from the tests showed that the shallow Upper Thunder Coal Seam, situated 15.3–24.3 m below surface, is likely one of the best ranking coals discovered in western Manitoba to date, with significantly low sulphur values, relatively low ash content and moderate to high calorific values. In April 2010, Gossan Resources Limited announced completion of Phase II of its Inwood Magnesium project, which comprised three phases of bench-

scale testing of high-purity Silurian Fisher Branch Formation dolomite, utilizing the Gossan-Zuliani (high-efficiency magnesium) process. Watts, Griffis and McOuat Limited independently calculated a NI 43-101–compliant Measured resource based on the results from a 2006 drill program and 25 holes previously drilled on the 80 hectare property (from surface to a depth of 12–15 m) to be 28 819 000 tonnes averaging 21.15 per cent MgO and 30.91 per cent CaO. The tests confirmed that the Gossan-Zuliani Process produces magnesium metal, under atmospheric conditions, at exceptionally high raw material efficiencies. In April 2012, the company announced that the magnesium produced by the process has been shown (in an independent study conducted by Process Research ORTECH) to substantially reduce midsize car emissions by almost 7 per cent over a car’s life expectancy (200 000 km). Planned Phase III will involve large-scale batch and process testing; and Phase IV will require pilot plant-testing to demonstrate commercial viability. In September 2009, Victory Nickel

Inc. announced it had drilled a (NI 43101–compliant) Indicated resource of 15 million tonnes of Ordovician Winnipeg Formation silica sand (containing 84 per cent marketable frac sand) above its Minago Nose nickel deposit, located south of Thompson. The sand, which forms part of the overburden, must be removed before the nickel can be open-pit mined. In September 2011, Victory Nickel received an Environmental Act licence for the Minago mine; and the development (including a frac sand component) was approved by its board of directors. In June 2012, Victory Nickel Inc. announced the creation of a subsidiary, Victory Silica Ltd., to oversee production and sales of up to 1.14 million tonnes per year of premium frac sand. Minago frac sand lab analysis of its potential 20/40 sand product indicates that it has a sphericity of 0.72; roundness of 0.78; acid solubility of 0.92 per cent; silt test (turbidity) of 24 Formazine Turbidity Units (ftu); and crush resistance of 11.5 per cent. 6

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ow do you bring more than 3,000 kids of all ages together, rain or shine? Invite them to three funfilled days at Manitoba Rocks!, a popular Manitoba Innovation, Energy and Mines outreach event held annually at The Forks during Provincial Mining Week. In 2012, Manitoba Rocks! celebrated 13-years of helping the public learn more about Manitoba’s second-largest primary resource industry. Visitors talked with professional geologists outdoors at a Rock Doc tent, visited a professional drill rig from Rodren Drilling, panned for gold with champion gold-panner, “Yukon” Dan Moore, and explored new interactive displays at Shaw Centre. Yukon Dan also brought a

mini-tour of Manitoba Rocks! to patients at Winnipeg’s Children’s Hospital. “Hey! Real gold!” shouted one happy seven-year-old as he showed off a vial of water with flecks of gold to one of the Manitoba Rocks! team. The boy’s father explained he had come across Manitoba Rocks! activities while touring The Forks for his son’s birthday. More than 400 students from grades four to seven attended Manitoba Rocks! as part of a scheduled, school tours program. “Students often tell us it’s their best field trip, so we always hope to include more schools, but we often have a waiting list,” says Kelly Proutt, school tour coordinator of the Manitoba Rocks! planning committee.

Participants enjoyed many geoscience displays including a museum-quality, life-size, dinosaur replica, and a fossil dig from The Canadian Fossil Discovery Centre (Morden, Manitoba) and a University of Manitoba Geology Department seismic demonstration. A rock polishing depot and black light “rare rocks” displays and rock collection activities, sponsored by The Mineral Society of Manitoba, and a high-tech mineral analysis display sponsored by The Manitoba Prospectors and Developers Association, drew steady crowds. Hudbay, Vale, and San Gold Corporation contributed activities and prizes. A national Mining Matters educational booth, sponsored by the Prospectors and

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Developers Association of Canada, brought rave reviews for its hands-on activities, including a sand box demo for kids about exploring, developing and reclaiming a mine. Engineers were on hand to share information on the rehabilitation of Manitoba’s orphaned and abandoned mines. Petroleum geologists gave a demonstration of a model-sized oil field pump jack. A Women in Mining – Manitoba Chapter presentation introduced visitors to Kate Rice, a pioneer Manitoba prospector, as part of their nomination to have her inducted into the Canadian Mining Hall of Fame. “We give Manitoba Rocks! a 10,” says Susan Bryant, a teacher from Isaac Brock School in Winnipeg. “Activities far exceeded expectations and helped students learn the everyday use and value of mining and minerals. As one exuberant grade four student told a Manitoba Rocks! volunteer, “It was the best day of my whole life!” Manitoba Rocks! graciously acknowledges its mining industry and community partners and many volunteers for their generous support, and extends special thanks to Oak Hammock Marsh, The Children’s Museum, The Manitoba Museum, The Royal Canadian Mint, and The Souris Rock Shop for providing additional draw prizes. Manitoba Rocks! will be part of the 2012 Manitoba Mining and Minerals Convention at the Winnipeg Convention Centre, November 15 to 17, with pre-booked school tours. For more information, please call 204-945-6500 in Winnipeg or toll free 1-800-223-5215, or visit www.ManitobaRocks.info. Manitoba Rocks! has welcomed over 30,000 visitors since 1999. 6

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SASKATCHEWAN EXPLORATION HIGHLIGHTS

Saskatchewan 2012 Exploration and Development Highlights By Saskatchewan Geological Survey – Saskatchewan Ministry of the Economy

n 2011, Saskatchewan remained a world leader in potash and uranium production accounting for approximately one-third of global potash production and 17 per cent of primary uranium production. Coal, gold, salt, sodium sulphate, silica sand, and clays were also mined and there remains good potential for a variety of other minerals including diamonds, base metals, and rare earth elements. Buoyed once again by strong potash prices and volumes, provincial mineral sales climbed to $8.1 billion in 2011, up from $6.9 B in 2010, and $4.6 billion in 2009 and second only to the record value of $8.6 billion set in 2008. In 2012, it is expected that Saskatchewan mineral exploration expenditures will total about $325.3 million, up from actual expenditures of $293.2 million in 2011. Once again the bulk of spending will be on potash and uranium projects (Table 1); but expenditures on gold, base metal, platinum group metal, and rare earth element projects are all expected to exceed historic levels. Since 2003, it is estimated that over $2.5 billion has been spent on exploration programs, a dramaticin-

crease when compared to the $674.5 million spent in the previous 20-years. As of August 31, 2012, active mineral dispositions, issued pursuant to the Mineral Disposition Regulations, 1986, totalled about 5.46 million hectares. In addition, there were 181 active potash dispositions, issued pursuant to the Subsurface Mineral Regulations, 1960, comprising permits and leases, totalling about 4.38 million hectares and 1,079 active coal dispositions totalling about 331,668 hectares issued under the Coal Disposition Regulations, 1988.

Uranium Saskatchewan produced 23.8 million lbs of U3O8 in 2011 accounting for all Canadian, and about 17 per cent of world, production. Uranium was produced from the McArthur River/Key Lake and Rabbit Lake operations. The McArthur River mine, operated by Saskatoon-based Cameco Corporation (Cameco), was the world’s largest producing uranium mine in 2011, yielding 20.0 million lb U3O8, more than double the production of the nearest competitor (Australia’s Olympic Dam). Production at McArthur River is

anticipated to be 18.7 million lb U3O8 in 2012. The Eagle Point mine at Rabbit Lake, another Cameco operation, produced 3.8 million lb U3O8 and is expected to yield a further 3.7 million lb U3O8 in 2012. In December 2011, the Cigar Lake mine’s operator, Cameco, announced that an agreement had been reached to process all of Cigar Lake’s ore at the AREVA Resources Canada Inc. (AREVA)-operated McClean Lake mill, thus reducing operating costs from $23.14 to $18.60 per pound of U3O8. McClean Lake is northern Saskatchewan’s third uranium operation and, although not currently producing, operator AREVA and partners are investing $150 million to upgrade the mill and increase capacity in advance of production at Cigar Lake, scheduled to begin in mid-2013. Construction at the Cigar Lake mine continues with the second shaft having reached the mine workings in early 2012. As part of the ramp up to production, Cameco has begun testing the underground jet-bore mining system, which will use high-pressure jets to extract ore. Production in 2013 is expected to be 0.4 million lb U3O8.

Table 1 – Saskatchewan mineral exploration expenditures as compiled by the Saskatchewan Geological Survey from the annual survey of exploration spending intentions. 2008 ($ M) 2009 ($ M) 2010 ($ M) 2011 ($ M) 2012 ($ M) (preliminary estimates) Uranium 204.4 108.6 103.2 101.2 117.7 Diamonds 73.2 10.9 17.3 7.9 9.5 Gold 8.9 3.0 9.5 10.5 13.2 Base Metals 1 6.8 3.0 6.5 13.3 9.2 Industrial Minerals 2 180.7 151.1 184.0 160.3 175.7 Total 474.0 276.6 320.5 293.2 325.3 Includes: platinum group metals. Includes: potash, coal, rare earth element, and clays. 1

26 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

SASKATCHEWAN EXPLORATION HIGHLIGHTS

2012-2013 Northern Prospector 27

SASKATCHEWAN EXPLORATION HIGHLIGHTS Uranium exploration, in and adjacent to the Athabasca Basin, remained robust in 2011 with $101.2 million spent. It is estimated that expenditures will reach nearly $118 million in 2012 (Table 1). Cameco is involved in several advanced stage exploration projects, including the Millennium joint venture, which is being advanced toward a production decision. In June 2012, Cameco announced the completion of a $150 million acquisition of AREVA’s share of the project bringing its stake in Millennium to 69.9 per cent

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with JCU Exploration (Canada) Ltd. remaining the minority partner. Cameco has also had significant exploration successes at its current mining operations. The reserve replacement program at the Eagle Point has consistently produced new reserves at the mine for several years and has been extended for 2012. In addition, regulatory approval has been received for exploration-related development of the Powell zone, which requires further evaluation. Exploration at the McArthur River mine has also been

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very successful. Feasibility work is currently underway on the McArthur River extension project to develop new mining areas. The project plan, subject to licensing approval, is to increase the production at the mine to 22 M lb U3O8 and to use the expanded underground mine footprint to further delineate mineralization to the north and south of the current operation. In early 2012, after a takeover battle with Cameco, Rio Tinto PLC (Rio Tinto) acquired Hathor Exploration Limited (Hathor), owner of the Roughrider uranium deposit near Points North Landing. The Roughrider deposit contains 17.2 million lb U3O8 in the Indicated category and 40.7 million lb U3O8 in the Inferred category. The estimate takes into account mineralization at the deposit’s west and east zones, but excludes the far east zone. Rio Tinto continues to independently evaluate the deposit. In addition, Rio Tinto also gained control of the largely untested Russell Lake property, which lies near the Millennium and Phoenix deposits. The property includes the Christie Lake occurrence, which was being tested by Hathor at the time of the takeover. Fission Energy Corp. (Fission) (operator, 60 per cent) and the Korea Waterbury Uranium Limited Partnership (40 per cent) have continued exploration efforts at their Waterbury Lake project. Drilling on the project has been focussed primarily on testing the continuity of the J Zone, just to the west of the Roughrider deposit. At the end of May 2012, Fission reported an NI 43-101–compliant Resource estimate for the J Zone suggesting the deposit contains 7.37 million lb U3O8 in the Indicated category and a further 1.51 million lb U3O8 in the Inferred category. Exploration continued at the J Zone with winter 2012 drilling extending the deposit’s north-south dimension by 55 metres. In addition, the company continues to test targets elsewhere on the property. Fission consolidated its holdings in the Athabasca Basin through the friendly, all-stock takeover of Pitchstone Exploration (Pitchstone). Pitchstone’s portfolio of properties contains a number of recently

SASKATCHEWAN EXPLORATION HIGHLIGHTS discovered uranium occurrences, including Gumboot, Candle, and Wolverine. Fission and ESO Uranium Corp. are equal partners in the Patterson Lake south joint venture south of the Athabasca Basin near Provincial Highway 955 to the former Cluff Lake mine. A drilling program followed up on a successful boulder prospecting and trenching campaign in which grades of up to 39.6 per cent U3O8 were discovered. Drilling has delineated intersections grading up to 0.102 per cent U3O8 over 0.5 metres. At depths of 150 metres from surface these intersections are unlikely to be the source of the high-grade boulders. Work has continued at the Shea Creek project (AREVA 51 per cent, operator; UEX Corp. 49 per cent) in 2012, where much of the work has been near the northern end of the mineralized trend near the Colette deposit. New drilling has continued to define unconformity mineralization in the northern and western parts of the deposit. The deposit, which is about 700 metres deep, is open to the north in the direction of AREVA and UEX

Corp.’s (UEX) Douglas River project. Further drilling has also been completed at the 58B deposit, located between Colette and the Kianna deposit to the southeast. The 58B deposit contains mineralization at the unconformity and in the basement, with some basement mineralization at nearly 900 metres in depth. UEX is also active near the Rabbit Lake operation, where work continues to delineate the Raven and Horseshoe deposits. Nearly 15,000 metres of drilling was completed at the Raven deposit to test for the continuity of areas grading greater than 0.1 per cent U3O8. Furthermore, about 1,700 metres of drilling at Horseshoe further extended the size of the deposit. UEX is currently examining the economic viability of the deposits on its Hidden Bay project. That examination, plus the results of ongoing exploration, will be incorporated in a future Pre-Feasibility Study. At the Phoenix A Zone, on the Wheeler River property (Denison Mines Corp. 60 per cent, operator; Cameco, 30 per cent; JCU 10 per cent), where earlier

work defined an Indicated Resource containing 35.6 million lb. U3O8, the mineralized zone has been expanded via new drilling. In addition to new high-grade intersections, the zone has been extended along an east-west cross fault demonstrating the potential for mineralization away from the main northeast trend of the deposit.

Gold Production continued at Saskatchewan’s two gold operations in 2012. Claude Resources Inc.’s (Claude) Seabee mining operation, situated approximately 125 kilometres northeast of La Ronge, reached a milestone in August by producing its one millionth troy ounce (oz.) of gold (Au). The Seabee operation, which currently produces ore from both the Seabee and Santoy 8 mines, is the first primary gold operation in the province’s history to achieve this level of production. In 2011, 44,756 oz. Au were produced from 257 181 tonnes (t) of ore grading 7.55 grams/ tonne (g/t) at the Seabee operation, whereas production for the first half of

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SASKATCHEWAN EXPLORATION HIGHLIGHTS 2012 was 21,740 oz. from 139 364 t grading 5.11 g/t. Golden Band Resources Inc.’s (Golden Band) La Ronge gold project entered its second year of production in 2012. Centred on the refurbished Jolu mill, approximately 120 kilometres north-northeast of La Ronge, this operation produced ore from both the Roy Lloyd mine and, as of December of 2011, the EP mine. Both of these mines are situated within 45 kilometres of the Jolu mill in rocks of the La Ronge Domain. From the commencement

of production in January 2011 to April 30, 2012, the La Ronge gold project has produced 44,877 oz. Au from 142 526 t of ore with an average grade of 10.10 g/t Au. In 2012, both companies continued to actively explore at and near their operations. Claude completed an extensive drilling program in the area proximal to its Seabee and Santoy 8 mines. This work led to the discovery of two significant new gold zones, referred to as L62 and Santoy Gap. The L62 zone is adjacent to existing Seabee mine workings on multiple levels

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at depth, whereas the Santoy Gap zone is situated between the Santoy 8 mine and past-producing Santoy 7 mine, approximately 14 kilometres east of the Seabee mine. The discovery and delineation of these zones resulted in the addition of 70,400 oz. Au (L62) to the Seabee operation’s Probable Reserves and 535,300 oz. Au (L62 and Santoy Gap) to Inferred Resources; representing a 236 per cent increase in the latter category. Claude anti cipates completing an additional 130,000 metres of drilling in the Seabee, Santoy 8, and Santoy Gap areas in 2012. Claude also continued to advance its Amisk gold project in 2012 after becoming 100 per cent owner through acquisition of its joint-venture partner, St. Eugene Mining Corp. Ltd. This project, centred 25 kilometres west of Flin Flon on northern Amisk Lake, is advancing using an open pit, bulk mining model. A Resource estimate released for the project in 2011 included an Indicated Resource of 921,000 oz. Au from ore with an average 0.95 g/t Au equivalent and an Inferred Resource of 646,000 oz. Au from ore with an average 0.70 g/t Au equivalent (Indicated and Inferred Resources combine both gold and gold-equivalent silver; cutoff grade = 0.40 g/t). Claude completed additional drilling at Amisk at the end of 2011 and in 2012 in order to increase the resource base at the project. Golden Band’s main exploration activities over the past year focussed on further Reserve/Resource definition at both the Roy Lloyd mine and the Komis deposit, and on follow-up drilling of recently identified bulk-till anomalies. Surface drilling at the Roy Lloyd mine was done to test the downward extension of the known mineralized structure and resulted in confirmation of its down-plunge extension for over 150 metres beneath the current level of mining. Drilling at the Komis deposit, located within two kilometres of the EP mine and slated for open-pit mining later in 2012, was done to test the along-strike and down-dip continuity of the mineralized zone. This drilling intersected multiple zones of high-grade gold mineralization and a previously unidentified zone of

SASKATCHEWAN EXPLORATION HIGHLIGHTS shallow, low-grade mineralization; some of this mineralization is situated beyond the previously defined boundaries of the deposit. Drilling and channel sampling also yielded encouraging results at the Fireweed prospect, a gold-in-till anomaly discovered near the Komis deposit in 2011. La Ronge Gold Corp. escalated gold exploration efforts this year at its Preview SW deposit, approximately 45 kilometres northeast of La Ronge. The deposit was originally discovered in the late 1980s by Cameco, which drilled about 90 holes and released a historic resource estimate. Since acquiring the property in October 2011, La Ronge Gold Corp. has completed 20 drill holes to bring the historic resources up to current NI 43-101 standards and to delineate the mineralized zones. This work has resulted in expansion of the known mineralization along strike to the northeast and southwest, along with identification of broad enveloping zones of low-grade gold mineralization around the high-grade zones. Wescan Goldfields Inc. continued with exploration at its Jojay property, situated in the La Ronge Domain approximately 125 kilometres north-northeast of La Ronge. The most significant gold project outside of the greater La Ronge area is Brigus Gold Corp.’s Goldfields project, located in the Beaverlodge Domain on the north shore of Lake Athabasca. In 2011, Brigus released a Pre-Feasibility Study for the project, including a Mineral Reserve estimate for both the Box and Athona deposits. A production decision on the project is currently pending.

Base Metals Although there is currently no base metal production in Saskatchewan, exploration expenditures for 2012 are expected to be over $9 million, on par with the 9.5 million spent in 2011. There are currently two active advanced exploration projects in northern Saskatchewan: Foran Mining Corp.’s (Foran) McIlvenna Bay deposit in the western Flin Flon Domain; and Manicouagan Minerals Inc.’s (Manicouagan) Brabant Lake deposit in

the western Kisseynew Domain. Foran has continued infill and exploration drilling and resource characterization on their copper-zinc-silver (Cu-Zn-Ag) McIlvenna Bay deposit, 80 kilometres west of Flin Flon. In November of 2011, the company reported an 85 per cent increase in Indicated Resources and a 60 per cent increase in Inferred Resources for the deposit. This increase also represented the first comprehensive, independent NI 43-101–compliant Mineral Resource estimate for the copper

stockwork zone. Subsequent drilling has been undertaken for a metallurgical testwork program. Manicouagan announced in October 2011, that a letter of intent to option its Brabant Lake zinc project to Votorantim Metals Canada Inc. (Votorantim) had been signed. After conducting about 2,500 metres of drilling on the property Votorantim has advised that it will not continue its option and will return control of the property over to Manicouagan.

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SASKATCHEWAN EXPLORATION HIGHLIGHTS Potash In 2011, Saskatchewan potash miners produced just over 17 million t KCl, up from 14.9 million t KCl in 2010, and the 9.6 million t KCl produced in 2009. Saskatchewan’s three potash-producing companies, Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan, The Mosaic Company, and Agrium Inc. combined for $6.85 billion in potash sales in 2011. Economic uncertainty sparked by the European debt crisis, combined with higher inventory levels in some large markets, led to a drop in potash sales in the last quarter of 2011 and the first quarter of 2012. Demand rebounded sharply in the following quarter and is expected to remain strong for the remainder of 2012 as a result of the recent poor-growing conditions in the U.S. and Europe. It is estimated that between 2004 and 2020 the province’s three producers will invest about $13.2 billion to upgrade and expand existing mining facilities to increase production capacity by over 90 per cent. Saskatchewan continues to be the world’s largest producer of potash, typically accounting for about one third of global production and 40 per cent of global trade. Potash exploration and development activity also remains robust. In June 2012, K+S Potash Canada (K+S Canada) held a ground-breaking ceremony for its Legacy solution-mine project about 60 kilometres northwest of Regina. The occasion marked the initiation of construction of the first new potash mine in Saskatchewan in over 40-years. The company estimates the 2.86 million t per year (tpa) mine will cost approximately $3.25 billion

with initial production targeted for 2015. K+S Canada is a division of the German based K+S Aktiengesellschaft, one of the world’s leading suppliers of standard and specialty fertilizers. Many other potash exploration companies are continuing to advance projects that range from early exploration to the feasibility study stages. BHP Billiton Ltd. (BHP) is continuing with pre-development work at its Jansen site, where the company has completed feasibility work and received approval of its Environmental Impact Assessment from provincial regulators. Excavation has progressed beyond 40 metres depth on both the production and service shaft collars and headframes are under construction. BHP now intends to have initial annual production at Jansen of four million tpa, rather than the originally proposed two million tpa. The facility is being designed to have an ultimate production capacity of eight million tpa, once fully operational. The company still hopes to begin producing saleable potash by 2015. BHP is also continuing to evaluate its Boulder, Young, and Melville project areas. With exploration work complete, the Boulder and Young projects are in the evaluation stages, but the company continued with an aggressive drilling and seismic program in the Melville area in the past year. BHP estimates that it has now invested over $2 billion on its Saskatchewan potash projects. Junior company Western Potash Corp. (Western) reached an agreement with the City of Regina to draw between 40 per cent and 70 per cent of the city’s

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treated waste water effluent for use at its Milestone potash-solution project, approximately 30 kilometres southeast of Regina. The agreement has the potential to generate more than $200 million for the city over the proposed life of the project. Western has submitted an Environmental Impact Statement and completed a PreFeasibility Study on the Milestone project. The study concluded that the potash resource in the project area is of sufficient size and grade to support a 2.8 million tpa mine for greater than 40-years. The company is now in discussions with potential investment partners to help them fund the proposed $2.8 billion mine, which could have initial production as early as 2016. Karnalyte Resources Inc. (Karnalyte) is continuing to work on its Wynyard project, where the company is attempting to be the first in Saskatchewan to produce potash from the potassium-bearing mineral carnallite (KMgCl3·6H2O), rather than sylvite (KCl). In March, Karnalyte filed an “Amended and Restated” Reserve and Resource estimate for the Wynyard Carnallite project to address comments made by securities regulators in British Columbia and Alberta stemming from the original technical report filed by the company in October of 2011. The new technical report outlines Proven and Probable Reserves of 62.9 and 92.0 million t KCl, respectively. Karnalyte is proposing an initial 625 000 tpa mine at a projected cost of $593 million. The operation is designed to be expandable up to 2.125 M tpa within five to six-years at an additional cost of approximately $2 billion. Karnalyte has also conducted a PreFeasibility Study on the recovery and sale of magnesium products that could be liberated during the potash mining operation. Magnesium compounds have a wide range of applications in the manufacturing of steel, cement, rubber, detergent, paper, and other products. Encanto Potash Corp. (Encanto) is continuing to work with the Muskowekwan First Nation on a potash project located about 100 kilometres north-northeast of Regina. The company has drilled

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SASKATCHEWAN EXPLORATION HIGHLIGHTS seven holes, conducted seismic surveys, and delineated Measured Resources of 26.9 million t KCl and Indicated Resources of 103.8 million t KCl. Encanto suggests these Resources are suitable to support a 2.5 million tpa mine for over 50-years. A Pre-Feasibility Study is currently underway on the project. After acquiring all of Rio Tinto’s potash assets in 2009 and conducting intensive seismic and drilling exploration programs, Brazilian miner Vale announced it will be postponing its potash-solution mining project near Kronau. The company cited “challenging economic times” as the reason for their decision. Vale stated that the project is still a part of the company’s long-term plans, but there is speculation that Vale may be focussing efforts on its Argentina potash assets, as potash consumption in South America has increased significantly over the past several years. In September of 2011, Rio Tinto announced it was entering into a joint venture with North Atlantic Potash Inc. (North Atlantic) on nine potash dispositions totalling about 240,000 hectares extending from Last Mountain Lake to Broadview. In May, Rio Tinto CEO Tom Albanese visited Regina and reiterated Rio Tinto’s commitment to evaluating its Saskatchewan uranium and potash assets. Albanese stated that the jointventure partners will take some time to evaluate the large parcels of land, but will

34 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

focus on areas with high ambient rock temperatures that are most prospective for solution mining. North Atlantic, the Canadian subsidiary of Russian fertilizer giant JSC Acron, also announced plans to invest over $20 million independently to evaluate dispositions in the Foam Lake area that were not part of the joint-venture agreement. Several other privately owned or foreign owned companies such as M & J Potash Corp., Yancoal Canada Resources Co. Ltd., and Canada Royal Potash Inc. are at various stages of exploring and evaluating potash projects. Coal in 2011, Saskatchewan’s three coal mines, Boundary Dam, Bienfait, and Poplar River, operated by Sherritt International Corp., produced 9.9 M t of coal, a slight decrease from the 10.1 million t produced in 2010. Production for 2012 is forecasted to be at similar levels as 2011. Saskatchewan is Canada’s third-largest coal producer behind Alberta and British Columbia and in recent years has typically accounted for about 15 per cent of national production. Nearly all of the coal produced in Saskatchewan is consumed for thermal power generation, which currently produces about 60 per cent of the province’s electricity. The Hudson Bay area in east-central Saskatchewan remains the focus of exploration efforts for new coal deposits in the province. While the vast majority of would-be coal explorers that staked land

on speculation in 2008 and 2009 have abandoned their claims, Saturn Minerals Inc., Westcore Energy Ltd., and Goldsource Mines Inc. (Goldsource) continued to explore their coal properties in the past year. Goldsource has conducted the most extensive exploration on its Border Coal project, where the company has drilled 154 holes and discovered 17 near surface coal deposits, with thicknesses up to 126 metres. In March 2012, the company released an updated technical report for the project that detailed Indicated Resources totalling 117.0 million t and an additional 33 million t of Inferred Resources. The company plans to conduct a bulk-sampling program prior to undertaking a formal Pre-Feasibility Study.

Diamonds The combined Star–Orion South kimberlite project is the most advanced diamond project in Saskatchewan. The project is operated by Shore Gold Inc. (Shore) and is jointly owned by Shore and the Fort à la Corne (FALC) Joint Venture (JV). The FALC JV is made up of Shore’s 100 per cent owned subsidiary, Kensington Resources Inc. (67 per cent) and Newmont Mining Corporation of Canada Ltd. (33 per cent). Shore has achieved a number of benchmarks for the project so far including: completed exploration; signed First Nation and local community cooperation agreements;

SASKATCHEWAN EXPLORATION HIGHLIGHTS submitted an Environmental Impact

Graphite

Statement; and completed a full Feasibil-

ity Study. The study concluded that 34.4 million carats, at an average value of $242 U.S. per carat, could be extracted from the Probable Reserves of 279 million t of kimberlite, which has a weighted average grade of 12.3 carats per hundred tonnes. It is estimated that the proposed mine would have a 20-year life and that total capital costs would be about $2.5 billion. Shore is currently working with provincial and federal regulators on the project’s environmental impact assessment.

Land acquisition and exploration

for graphite has increased significantly this year with three companies involved. Strike Graphite Corp. (Strike) staked its Simon Lake property where three drill holes, to test separate historical locations, confirmed that wide intervals over tens of metres of flake graphite are present in these areas. Of note, hole SL12-02 encountered approximately 132.5

First Graphite Corp. began explor-

about 20 kilometres southwest of the

source for the Fraser Lakes Zone B on

Deep Bay graphite deposit, and Canadian Platinum Corp. (CPC) drilled an

the Way Lake project, which included

intersection of 142 metres of graphitic

uranium and rare earth oxides. At a cut-

argillite on their Peter Lake project with-

off grade of 0.01 per cent U3O8, the Re-

in the Campbell River Group. CPC also

source estimate is 10 354 926 t grading

acquired three new claims, which they

0.03 per cent U3O8 (6,960,681 lb.), 0.003

call the Brabant project in the southern

per cent La2O3 (681,325 lb.), 0.006 per

Brabant Lake area.

cent Ce2O3 (895,077 lb.), 0.001 per cent Yb2O3 (304,762 lb.), and 0.007 per cent Y2O3 (1,619,017 lb.). The mineralization is associated with circa 1800 Ma granitic pegmatite dykes.

Silica Sand

In January, Preferred Sands Unlim-

ited (Preferred Sands) purchased Winn Bay Sand Limited which has a quartz frac sand mine in the Ordovician Winnipeg Formation at Hanson Lake. The 110 employees were retained. Frac sand is used by the petroleum industry for enhanced oil and gas recovery. Preferred Sands is the largest frac sand producer in Canada and one of the three largest in the U.S. Winn Bay now has a large land package and has been preparing a new location northwest of their present operation, and

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For further information on mining and mineral exploration in Saskatchewan please contact: Jason Berenyi, P.Geo., Assistant Chief Geologist Saskatchewan Geological Survey Minerals, Lands, and Policy Division Saskatchewan Ministry of the Ecomony 200-2101 Scarth Street

Engineering

Regina, SK S4P 2H9 Tel: (306) 787-2579 Jason.Berenyi@gov.sk.ca or Gary Delaney, Ph.D., P.Geo., Chief Geologist Saskatchewan Geological Survey Minerals, Lands, and Policy Division Saskatchewan Ministry of the Economy

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( 3 0 6 ) 2 4 2 - 3 8 2 2 mail@nutanamachine.com Saskatoon 2012-2013 Northern Prospector 35

SASKATCHEWAN MINING ASSOCIATION

Mining Means

Investing in Saskatchewan A message from the Saskatchewan Mining Association (SMA)

askatchewan is a Canadian and international resourcerich powerhouse, and is posed for additional growth in the coming decades as the mining industry in Saskatchewan invests over $50 billion in the expansion and development of new and existing mines and ongoing operations. Saskatchewan Mining Association (SMA) members were surveyed to determine projected and confirmed capital investments from 2008- 2028, as well as the approximate value of new mine output resulting from new investments, the number of jobs that would be created, and issues related to these expansions. “When we say mining is great for Saskatchewan, this report shows why,” says Pam Schwann, SMA executive director. “The well-being of our province is supported in many significant ways by the mining industry, and that will continue in the decades ahead.” The report identified that in 2008, the mining industry directly contributed $2 billion to provincial revenue to support government programs and services; this amounted to 20 per cent of the government’s total budgeted revenues. Currently over 24 mines operate in Saskatchewan and the sector provides more than 30,500 direct and indirect jobs, with mining-related employment accounting for one in 16 jobs in the province. Approximately 15,100 additional workers will be needed in the mining industry in the next 10-years. As

36 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

Schwann points out, “These are quality, long-term jobs, with about 120 different career options. This will be a real benefit to communities that previously lacked employment opportunities, especially in rural and northern Saskatchewan.” The mining industry in northern Saskatchewan is also a global leader in aboriginal employment and business development. In 2011, approximately 50 per cent of the employees of the mines and their long-term contractors were of aboriginal ancestry with a payroll of approximately $200 million. In 2011, northern mines also purchased over $464 million of goods and services from northern businesses. In 2011, Saskatchewan continued to provide one-third of global potash production and 18 per cent of the world’s primary uranium production. Saskatchewan was the number two mineral producing jurisdiction in Canada, with a value of mineral sales over $9.2 billion. Amid this good news is the somber reality that you have to go to the resources; they can’t come to you. To create mines, you need roads, power grids, air services, rail lines, water systems, communications, and other infrastructure. As with any economic development strategy, government investment plays a key role in helping to develop the infrastructure that in turn attracts investment. This is especially important to the future vitality of rural and northern communities. Two key challenges for growth in the mining sector were

SASKATCHEWAN MINING ASSOCIATION

In 2011, Saskatchewan continued to provide one-third of global potash production and 18 per cent of the world’s primary uranium production. identified as availability of power infrastructure and road infrastructure. In terms of road infrastructure in the south, this means improving traffic flow on major transportation arteries – such as Highway 16 (Yellowhead) particularly between Saskatoon and Lanigan, to provide for safer and more efficient transportation of the public, increased commuting mine workforce, and related mine supply traffic. In the north, the construction of the 54 kilometre Highway 914 link connecting the two highest grade uranium mines in the world, McArthur River and Cigar Lake, will connect surplus mill capacity at McClean Lake and Rabbit Lake mills at the northeast edge of the Athabasca Basin, with the existing and developing ore bodies at the southern edge of the Basin. The construction of this link would eliminate the current 950 kilometre round trip from mine mouth to mill, extend mine life and related employment and business opportunities, and provide an alternate access route to the northern region. Additional northern road development, such as an all season road to the producing Seabee Gold Mine, would promote further exploration and development in other prospective northern regions.

In terms of power infrastructure, secure, dependable base-

load power is fundamental for the industry to operate. At Cameco’s Key Lake operation alone, it is estimated that the loss of operational capacity due to power outages has cost the equivalent of roughly $55 million in uranium production over a two year period. This also translates into a corresponding loss in

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SASKATCHEWAN MINING ASSOCIATION

The current potash producers in Saskatchewan will have spent approximately $13 billion from 2006 to 2020 to increase the current productive capacity of the industry by 90 per cent. royalties paid to the Province of Saskatchewan and a loss of revenue to SaskPower. As Kelvin Dereski, past president of SMA and general manager of Mosaic Potash Esterhazy notes, “Companies that are making multi-billion dollar investments in the province, as our companies are doing, need to have the confidence that the required baseload power generation, transmission and distribution infrastructure will be in place to support their investments and operations. A stable and secure power generation, transmission and distribution system is fundamental for the growth of our industry, and the growth of Saskatchewan.” The current potash producers in Saskatchewan will have spent approximately $13 billion from 2006 to 2020 to increase the current productive capacity of the industry by 90 per cent. Several companies new to the Saskatchewan potash industry are also investing in developing potash mines in the region. K+S Potash Canada is proceeding with their $3.25 billion solution mine, and in June, had the official ground breaking ceremony at their Legacy Mine site near Moose Jaw. BHP Billiton has invested over $1.2 billion on the proposed eight million tonnes/ year Jansen Project to date, and is currently proceeding with shaft development for the first 350 metres of the production

and service shafts as it continues it’s feasibility study phase on the project. Other mining giants, Vale and Rio Tinto have active exploration projects for potash, and Rio Tinto has also expanded it’s uranium portfolio into Saskatchewan. The uranium industry is also poised for growth, with Cameco announcing it’s plan to double U production by 2018 largely as a result of expanded mining operations in Saskatchewan including expansion at McArthur River, production from Cigar Lake anticipated in 2013, and prospective deposits such as Millennium also poised to continue down the path to production. Gold mining is also expanding in Saskatchewan, with the new Roy Lloyd mine coming on stream in 2011. This year also marks a very significant milestone for Saskatchewan mineral production, with the Seabee Gold mine becoming the first primary gold mine in Saskatchewan to produce one million ounces. Coal production from southern Saskatchewan continues to source approximately 60 per cent of Saskatchewan’s baseload power generating ability. The diversity of resources provides a diversity of opportunity, making mining a key part of the Saskatchewan advantage. 6

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Potash Potash Potash

From The Ground Up Saskatchewan’s potash mining industry is providing prosperity and security for the province’s communities By Leonard Melman

asual visitors to the southern portion of Saskatchewan cannot help but note that agriculture is of vast importance to the province. Clearly, they understand that the expanses of vibrant earth combined with adequate moisture, long hours of sunshine, and a knowledgeable agricultural community have allowed Saskatchewan to become, in familiar words, the “breadbasket of the world.” But, they are missing one ingredient. In order to make those fields truly productive, one additional product is necessary and that product is fertilizer. As it turns out, Saskatchewan is blessed with the world’s greatest storehouse of fertilizer’s key component – potash – and in the industry’s 50-year history, Saskatchewan potash production has been of immense economic and social importance to the province.

40 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

The great economically mineable deposits of potash stretch across a span from just west of Saskatoon near the Alberta border southeast to near the Manitoba border and beyond. These deposits of potash-bearing ore are generally about seven to 11 feet thick and are to be found 3,000 to 3,500 feet underground. There are other deposits further to the south, but they are at even deeper depths, and impossible to mine economically based on present technical knowledge. Most of these deposits are in the form of potassium chloride and, at present, those which are recoverable are estimated to amount to over 100 billion tons. Ninety-five per cent of recovered potash is used for fertilizer and the remaining five per cent is utilized in other industrial applications.

Potash deposits were originally

discovered in 1942 during at-depth oil exploration. Specific drilling for potash uncovered vast deposits but a serious problem developed. The potash could only be recovered from such depths by sinking shafts down to the deposit levels, but three major efforts of the 1950s encountered severe water problems. Finally, in 1962, the International Minerals and Chemical Company (later Mosaic Holdings) discovered methods of overcoming water problems in their projects near the town of Esterhazy.

With the water problem now under

control, a burst of activity spread across the deposit-rich areas and a dozen companies combined to successfully open 10 mines.

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Potash Potash Potash Unfortunately, the combined capacity of the new mines exceeded market demand and a period of chaos ensued as several companies were threatened with closure. The Province of Saskatchewan then stepped in and purchased four of those mines while adding a productive portion of another and combined all those holdings into a Crown Corporation named the Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan. However, the province did not wish to remain in what had been a private enterprise realm, and in 1988, the privatization process was begun, ending in the creation of a private entity with the identical name, Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan (PCS), which began trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange in 1989 under the symbol â&#x20AC;&#x153;POT.â&#x20AC;? During the two decades since formation, PCS has consolidated many potash holdings and is now the dominant producer within the province. Since

their founding, the company has acquired 10 mines distributed within the productive arc with six between Lanigan and the Saskatoon area; three near the towns of Esterhazy and Rocanville; and one in the vicinity of Belle Plain, itself located between Regina and Moose Jaw. To date, over 230 million tonnes of Potassium Chloride have been produced and employment within the industry has reached more than 3,000 jobs, many of them high-wage positions. PCS has been engaged in expanding their potash mining operations and has

put into effect a major expansion plan which will see total investment of $7.5 billion committed to several important projects. Obviously, the economic impact of such ongoing large ongoing operations, combined with major expansion in area towns, has been significant and, for the purposes of this article, we will examine three such communities; Rocanville, Lanigan, and Esterhazy. Rocanville is a community of about 1,000 located just above the Trans-Canada highway a few kilometres from the

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Potash Potash Potash Manitoba border. Aside from the normal attributes of “a good town to raise children,” Rocanville enjoys two unique distinctions. First, the town was the site of the Seymour Oiler Factory which produced over one million oil cans during the Second World War. As a remembrance to that era, the community now possesses the largest oil can in the world. The other odd fact is that Rocanville is the home of the famous “crop circles” which became the subject of world-wide attention in 1996. The Rocanville potash mine is wholly owned by PCS and is located 16 kilometres northeast of the town. Production of potash has seen a steady increase since the mine’s original opening from barely 300,000 tonnes per year (t/y) to a present capacity approaching three million t/y. In 2007, PCS announced a major expansion at the mine and mill and with a projected investment of $2.8 billion, capacity is expected to grow to 15.7 million t/y upon completion in the relatively near future. Ore is presently accessed through two shafts to the 1,000 metre level and the company utilizes a long room-andpillar method of mining. The favourable economic contribution of PCS to the town can be measured by the average annual household income of better than $50,000 per year, unusually high for a small agricultural community. Lanigan is a community of 1,300 located in central Saskatchewan along the Yellowhead Highway, mid-way between the Alberta and Manitoba borders. Like Rocanville, Lanigan is also a family town and is known to have one of the lowest crime rates in all Saskatchewan. Their economy is based on two industries; the largest feed lot and ethanol plant in Canada, and being home to one of the world’s largest potash mines. PCS’s expansion plans for the Lanigan mine were brought to a successful completion in 2008. Based on an investment of $420 million, the com-

pany’s de-bottlenecking and compaction expansion program was brought in on schedule and on budget. The project plan was to bring additional production of 1.5 million tonnes on stream and involved the refurbishment of a mill which had sat idle since the mid-1980s. This expansion program has allowed the annual production at Lanigan to increase to about 3.4 million tonnes per year.

One unique measure of the company’s contribution to the town of Lanigan is the fact that one of their major annual events is the Potash Corporation’s Fireman’s Rodeo, held during September. Esterhazy is a slightly larger community than either Rocanville or Lanigan, with a population of about 2,500 and serves as a retail trade centre for a larger population. While the potash in-

2012-2013 Northern Prospector 43

Potash Potash Potash Thanks to such demand growth, it is estimated that total investment by Saskatchewan’s potash mining industry will amount to $50 billion over the next two decades. dustry is of some importance to several communities, in Esterhazy it is a major source of the community’s economic strength as there are two major Mosaic Holdings mining projects which now constitute the largest such operations on earth. Expansion plans are now underway to add a third mine with perhaps a fourth being constructed in the next few years. In addition, Esterhazy is home to Saskatchewan’s Potash Interpretive Centre. Mosaic’s potash production is presently focused on the K-1 and K-2 Mines which are now producing at a rated capacity of 5.3 million t/y. The company is now in the process of a major expansion which will bring K-1 and K-2 total production to over seven million t/y and they are also in the process of construct-

ing a new mine K-3, which will add another one million t/y upon completion. There are plans further down the road for construction of yet another mine, K-4. Mosaic is making a major contribution to the area’s economy as hundreds of workers are currently employed in various expansion construction projects and the number of steady jobs at the various ongoing mining operations now numbers about 1,300. There are many other Saskatchewan towns which are benefitting from this dynamic industry, including places such as Allan, Patience Lake, Watson, Belle Plain, and Cory. Aside from being major contributors to the province’s prosperity, potash industry miners are also endeavouring to

be good corporate citizens by contributing to the facilities and activities of their towns; developing effective mine waste management projects, and being solid stewards of the environment. Despite periodic blips, the overall trend in demand for fertilizers is growing along with increases in the world’s population, as well as the need for fertilizers to replenish the vitality of soils which have been over-cultivated for generations. Thanks to such demand growth, it is estimated that total investment by Saskatchewan’s potash mining industry will amount to $50 billion over the next two decades. The province is on a resource roll – and potash is making a sizeable contribution to that growth. 6

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Potash Potash Potash

joining the legacy Germany’s K+S Group sets its sights on Saskatchewan and the Legacy Project

he globe’s fifth largest potash producer, and number one producer of salt, has committed to investing over $3 billion in a new potash mine in the R.M. of Dufferin, about 38 kilometres northeast of Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. K+S Potash Canada, a wholly owned subsidiary of the German K+S Group, is working to open the first new potash mine in Saskatchewan in nearly 40-years. Their head office is located in downtown Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, and though they currently have about 100 employed with the company at the head office and at their site, that will skyrocket to well over 1,100 employees and contractors in the next two years, when the mine is at the peak of construction. K+S Group – whose name stands for ‘Kali’ the German word for potash, and ‘Salz’, the German word for salt – agreed in late 2010 to launch a friendly takeover of Potash One, a small Canadian-based company which held several potash exploration permits in southern Saskatchewan. The German company is already the largest supplier of salt in the world, and already operates a salt plant in the province near the existing Mosaic potash mine in Belle Plaine. It has over 100-years experience in the mining business, and is the only commodities stock

on the German benchmark index DAX, the stock index composed of that nation’s 30 largest listed companies. The Legacy Project is a great fit for K+S Group for several reasons. “Our Legacy Project is one of the world’s economically most attractive greenfield projects,”says Norbert Steiner, chief executive officer of the board of executive directors of K+S Group.

“The benefits of the project include the already existing very good infrastructure, the significantly earlier availability of product that solution mining brings.” The North American site will also act as a supplement to the existing German production network, opening the possibility of unique diversification of production amongst global potash producers. The new site will act as the starting point

2012-2013 Northern Prospector 45

Potash Potash Potash

for sales to the emerging growth markets of Asia and South America, as well as the rest of North America. K+S Group will continue to carry out distribution of potash globally via its tried and tested infrastructure. K+S has declared the project cost at an estimated $3.25 billion for the two first production phases by 2023. Currently, the initial work on the project is nearing completion, including the initial

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infrastructure developments, such as road works, plant earthworks, drilling of the first production wells, and the establishment of the supporting water system. Water and temporary power have been established at the site as well, and the basic plant engineering is complete. Soon, the foundations for the plant will be poured in preparation for the building and equipment work starting in 2013. The Legacy Project will not only be

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a great asset to K+S Group, it will also serve as a significant economic benefit to Saskatchewan. It’s estimated that the project will create roughly six million hours of direct employment during its construction, with another one million hours being required for indirect employment. The project will become a valuable new customer for Saskatchewan’s public utilities, with a new natural gas line needed from Transgas, telecommunications lines from SaskTel, electrical transmission lines from SaskPower, and a water pipeline from SaskWater. Recruitment of First Nations and Metis people, and use of contract services owned by, run by, or employing First Nations and Metis people will also be a priority for K+S Potash Canada. The construction and operation of the new economic development project will also mean substantial additional tax revenues for the federal, provincial, and municipal levels of government, resulting in tax dollars estimated in the millions of dollars. Legacy’s method of extraction is via solution mining, the process of mining underground soluble minerals by dissolving them with water. The process starts by drilling a large borehole into the potash seam, creating a well. Hot water is then pumped into the well, where it dissolves the minerals horizontally, gradually creating a cavern. A subsequent borehole is drilled approximately 70-100 metres from the initial well, via which the underground solution is pumped back up, and into the production facility. The brine is then processed via an evaporation procedure, the result of which is the potash bearing crystals. Solution mining is an economically and environmentally sustainable process, and is best used in areas where the potash seam is too far underground to use conventional underground mining techniques. The start of production and first volumes of potash at the Legacy site are

Potash Potash Potash Legacy’s method of extraction is via solution mining, the process of mining underground soluble minerals by dissolving them with water. The process starts by drilling a large borehole into the potash seam, creating a well. Hot water is then pumped into the well, where it dissolves the minerals horizontally, gradually creating a cavern. anticipated to begin in late 2015. The mine’s full capacity will be reached by 2023, when the plant will be producing 2.86 million tonnes of potash per year. There is also the potential for further expansion, which would increase the annual output of the mine to as much as four million tonnes per year. At about 18 per cent, the K2O content at the Legacy site is significantly higher than that of the German sites and will therefore enable more efficient and more economic extraction. The product from Legacy will complement the current global output

for the K+S Group of approximately 7.5 million tonnes of potash product, which accounts for about 10 per cent of global potash sales volumes. At the ground breaking ceremony for the Legacy site on June 19, 2012, Norbert Steiner, chairman of the board of executive directors of K+S, spoke to a crowd of partners, politicians, and employees. “The Legacy Project is of the utmost importance for us,” he says. “This is why we are investing massive amounts of effort, energy, and capital into this project

– we believe that the Legacy Project is an investment in the future of our company, an investment in the people of Saskatchewan, and most importantly an investment in a sustainable future. This is, for us, more than a mine, more than an investment. Quite simply, this project is a legacy.” With a mine life for Legacy estimated at a minimum of 50-years, K+S Potash Canada will surely become one of the major players for quite some time in the newly booming Saskatchewan potash industry. 6

CREATE. ENHANCE. SUSTAIN. At AECOM, we help our clients extract value for today and tomorrow. Our integrated, multidisciplinary team of global experts delivers full cycle miningrelated services from environmental planning and permitting to mine-tomarket solutions across some of the world’s richest resource regions, including the Americas, Australia and Asia.

www.aecom.com

2012-2013 Northern Prospector 47

Potash Potash Potash

GROWING PEOPLE Expansions are creating job opportunities at PotashCorp

growing world population is leading to new jobs at PotashCorp as the company prepares for an expected rise in longterm demand for its agricultural staple – fertilizer. For nearly 10-years, the Saskatoon-based company has been expanding its potash facilities in Saskatchewan and New Brunswick to increase its operational capacity to prepare for demand in the years to come. At a cost of $8.2 billion, PotashCorp’s expansion program is a major undertaking, but one that will position the company to take advantage of an anticipated rise in consumer need for its namesake nutrient. Through recently completed site expansions and those yet to come, PotashCorp is increasing its capacity and creating new jobs. In addition, employee retirements in the potash division are creating even more career openings in its home province. Like the scale of its expansion program, the number of people PotashCorp anticipates it will need to hire in the near future is significant – approximately 1,000 people over the next three years. “PotashCorp already has an industry-leading team, but we forecast we’ll need more than 1,000 new hardworking, safety-

48 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

focused people to staff our Saskatchewan potash operations between now and 2015,” says Lee Knafelc, PotashCorp’s vice president, Human Resources and Administration. “We have world-class potash assets, but our most important resource is our people. That’s why our goal to attract the most talented employees to our company is so important.” The company is working with aboriginal groups in Saskatchewan to help meet the need for skilled employees. In 2011, PotashCorp announced its commitment to deepen its relationship with aboriginal organizations and increase First Nations and Métis representation both as employees and suppliers. As the fastest growing demographic in Saskatchewan, the company sees plenty of opportunities for aboriginal people to step into PotashCorp job openings today and in the coming years. The same sentiment holds true for people of non-aboriginal heritage. Creating a welcoming and inclusive working atmosphere is important, says Knafelc, but safety remains the number one priority at all PotashCorp sites. From the moment an employee arrives for his or her shift, safety becomes the focus of the individ-

Potash Potash Potash The company is working with aboriginal groups in Saskatchewan to help meet the need for skilled employees.

ual and the team. The goal, he explains, is for people to leave work the same way they arrived – safe and healthy. “We work every day to make sure our people are safe. While there are always improvements to be made, our employees take the safety of themselves and their coworkers seriously and personally,” says Knafelc. PotashCorp employees realize their work helps nature provide. As the global population continues to rise, farmers are under pressure to produce more crops on little new land – and potash-rich fertilizer can help.

Where great careers grow www.potashcorpjobs.com

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2012-2013 Northern Prospector 49

Potash Potash Potash

Today, about half of the world’s crops are grown with the help of fertilizer. As the earth’s population is expected to move from seven billion people to nine billion by 2050, producers will have to

use the best farming practices available, including the use of fertilizer, to feed their families, communities, and the globe. Through its role in the agriculture business, PotashCorp understands the

world will need more food in the future. That’s why it’s expanding its potash operations and looking for the next generation of employees today to contribute to global food security tomorrow. 6

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News That Trades

Potash Potash Potash

GLOBAL LEADER, LOCAL EXPERTISE SNC-Lavalin Global Mining and Metallurgy

Vanscoy Ultimate (VAULT) Potash Programme. (Source: Agrium)

SNC-Lavalin Jansen Project team members.(Source: BHP Billiton)

s a global leader in the mining and metallurgy sector worldwide, SNC-Lavalin can undertake every stage of project development, from scoping studies, metallurgical test work and feasibility analysis, to final design, construction, and commissioning. SNC-Lavalin Global Mining & Metallurgy (M&M) is currently carrying out over 350 assignments, studies, and projects around the world in the aluminum, iron ore, base metals, precious metals, potash, and ferro-alloys sectors, among others. With 14 mining and metallurgy service delivery centres across the globe grouped according to expertise, SNC-Lavalin has a unique capacity to draw on an international pool of resources for global workshare.

offices, allow SNC-Lavalin to meet clients’ unique needs. M&M’s offices bring crucial regional know-how to the equation, including close ties with the local workforce and contractors. With

M&M at Work

its regional application of global best

M&M’s world-class expertise, regional presence, and global reach coupled with the local knowledge of their

Lavalin maintains a leading presence in

52 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

practices, systems and procedures, SNCSaskatchewan and Manitoba.

Saskatchewan

SNC-Lavalin is involved in uranium, potash, and gold projects. SNC-Lavalin was retained to undertake a concept study for the development of a new uranium mine, processing plant, and surface infrastructure. Their regional office provided tailored in-house expertise in mine dewatering, materials handling, and sizing, as well as mine ventila-

Potash Potash Potash

SNC-Lavalin Jansen project site. (Source: BHP Billiton)

tion. They also used external experts for shaft sinking and mine development. Through their offices in Saskatoon, Vancouver, and Toronto SNC-Lavalin is supporting a multi-year contract with BHP Billiton to manage various potash projects in central Saskatchewan, as well as a port project in Washington. The company will also provide engineering, procurement, and construction management (EPCM) services, as required. SNC-Lavalinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s regional office is lead-

ing a concept study and a pre-economic assessment (PEA) for a Saskatchewan based gold producer. The study results are expected to create a smoother process operation at an existing facility, while increasing the consistency of its front-end ore-blending and delivery rate. The PEA objectives for the second site will identify the critical operating and market parameters necessary for viability, and the most practical final product parameters for the site.

Manitoba

SNC-Lavalin is active in copper, zinc, and nickel projects. SNC-Lavalin has executed numerous detailed design projects for a major copper/zinc producer. Recently, the company conducted a pre-feasibility study for a new processing facility at an existing mine site. It included trade-off reviews for crushing, milling, Merill-Crowe, and carbon in leach processing options for by-product precious metals.

UNPARALLELED EXPERIENCE AND KNOW-HOW

Founded in 1911, SNC-Lavalin is a world leader in engineering and construction for the mining and metallurgy sector. Active in Saskatchewan and Manitoba for over 45 years, our proven technical expertise and experienced project teams make SNC-Lavalin the partner of choice for your project development needs.

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2012-2013 Northern Prospector 53

Potash Potash Potash SNC-Lavalin’s local office has also undertaken several projects, from study to implementation, for another northern Manitoba copper/zinc mine site. The company arranged a tour of Chilean concentrate facilities to offer the client a personalized viewing of the proposed technology in full operation before committing capital. SNC-Lavalin has a long-standing

relationship with Manitoba’s nickel producers on a regional and international basis. Recently, the company undertook a comprehensive review of a facility in Manitoba. It compiled a risk matrix and presented recommendations, allowing the client to strategically apply capital resources in order to best address the greatest risks to health, safety, environment, and plant reliability.

WE CARE About the environment

SNC-Lavalin Environment offers a

variety of services to the mining sector, including social and environmental impact assessments that satisfy both domestic and international standards; mitigation measures; community resettlement plans; community development programs; evaluation of legal requirements; consultation with affected populations and government agencies; permitting and approvals; GIS mapping; skills training and related services.

Be a part of great projects. Be a part of AMEC.

About the communities where we live and work

SNC-Lavalin aboriginal and North-

ern Affairs develops projects in conjunction with aboriginal entities, ensuring incorporation of aboriginal capacity building and inclusion programs. In this regard, the company often enters into various forms of business partnerships with aboriginal organizations to develop projects of mutual interest; and provides ongoing commercial and regulatory advice in order to move project prospects forward in a respectful and effective manner.

“We are proud of the partnerships

we have developed over the years in Saskatchewan, Manitoba, elsewhere in Canada and around the world,” says Dale

At AMEC, we develop some of the world’s most challenging open-pit and underground mining projects. Work with industry-leading mining experts in front-end geology, permitting, environmental consulting, geotechnics, process design, construction and project management, operations support and mine closure. Global mining solutions from concept through closure. mining@amec.com amec.com/mining

54 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

Clarke, executive vice president, Global Mining & Metallurgy. “We look forward to continued collaboration and success in the years to come through an adherence to the principles of corporate social responsibility.” 6

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FORT A LA CORNE

Sparkling Future The Fort a la Corne area has come a long way since the days of the fur traders

ho would have thought that when Marilyn Monroe sung those famous words, “A kiss on the hands may be tres’ continental, but diamonds are a girl’s best friend,” that many years forward she would actually be promo ting the Province of Saskatchewan and one of the best known areas within the province, the Fort a la Corne forest region. The fort itself is one of the oldest Saskatchewan landmarks, having been built in 1753 near the confluence of the North and South Saskatchewan rivers to the east of the present-day City of Prince Albert. One can only wonder if the early fur traders could have dreamt that one day the fur trade would be gone, and the search for diamond wealth would be the major industry of the immediate area. Initial indications of diamond potential in the area began with an unconfirmed report filed in 1948, but the actual initiation of serious exploration started 40-years later when a large

By Leonard Melman

kimberlite pipe was discovered northwest of Prince Albert as a result of studies of airborne geophysical surveys conducted in the 1960s. Kimberlite formations known as “pipes” are frequently associated with being carriers of diamonds. Corporate involvement in the Fort a la Corne kimberlite area started in the early 1990s with the formation of a tri-party consortium including Cameco Corporation, De Beers Canada Ltd., and Kensington Resources before Shore Gold Inc. entered the area picture in 1995. Shore Gold’s interests in the Fort a la Corne area are known as the Star – Orion South Project. Two specific projects are involved; the Star Diamond Project, which is 100 per cent owned by Shore, and the Orion South Diamond Project, which is a joint venture named FALC-JV, between Shore Gold and Newmont Canada with Shore holding a 67 per cent interest and Newmont Canada 33 per cent.

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Northlands College offers a variety of training programs related to the mining industry in Northern Saskatchewan. These training-toemployment programs prepare northerners for occupations in all phases of the mining sector. Delivery of mine training programs is facilitated through a cooperative agreement amongst the Province of Saskatchewan, Northlands College, Aboriginal agencies and the mining industry called the Multi- Party Training Plan. Programs are developed and delivered under the guidance of the Mineral Sector Steering Committee. For more information contact: La Ronge Program Centre Phone (306) 425-4353 Or Toll-Free 1-888-311-1185 www.northlandscollege.sk.ca

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2012-2013 Northern Prospector 55

FORT A LA CORNE STAR DIAMOND PROJECT The Star kimberlite is located in a burned area of the Fort a la Corne forest, about 60 kilometres east of Prince Albert in an area with excellent mining infrastructure. Prince Albert itself is a major supply centre for northern Saskatchewan and regional paved highways, a gravel road grid system and a network of forestry roads provide excellent year-round access to the project area. Electric power would be available through the nearby Saskatchewan power grid. The Star Diamond Project itself consists of 23 contiguous mineral dispositions covering 9,280 hectares. The Fort a la Corne kimberlites in Saskatchewan host one of the world’s most extensive kimberlite fields and over 70 kimberlite pipes are known to exist there, and over 70 per cent of those pipes have been shown to contain diamonds. The “Star Kimberlite” itself averages almost 88 metres in thickness (roughly the length of an American football field) and encompasses an area over four square kilometres while being covered by 90 metres of overburden. After completing airborne and ground magnetic surveys in the late 1990s, Shore began a series of extensive programs which eventually saw the drilling of three NQ (48 millimetre diameter) holes; 268 PQ (85 millimetre diameter) holes; one large diameter (24 inch) reverse circulation hole and 88 larger (48 inch) reverse circulation holes.

FALC-JV As noted above, the Fort a la Corne Joint Venture is a working partnership between Shore Gold and Newmont Canada and is comprised of the Star West and Orion South projects with particular emphasis on the latter. Although the ownership of the Star Project and the FALCJV projects are somewhat different, they are both operated by Shore Gold and are being co-developed as the “Star – Orion South Diamond Project.”

56 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

A Mineral Resource Estimate for the total project areas was prepared in July 2011, and showed Star Project reserves in the “probable” category amounting to 165,890,000 tonnes grading 12.3 carats per hundred tonnes (cpht), and containing 20.386 million carats. Reserves in the probable category at Orion South amounted to 113,090,000 tonnes grading 12.4 cpht containing 13.994 million carats. Total reserves in the “probable” category for the combined projects amount to 278,980,000 tonnes, with an average grade of 12.3 cpht containing 34.380 million carats of diamonds. A Feasibility Study was also prepared at the same time which assessed the viability of developing and operating the project as open pits with on-site ore processing. The proposed processing plant would process ore at the rate of 14.3 million tonnes per annum (mtpa), just short of its nameplate capacity of 16.4 mtpa. The Feasibility Study also includes plans for a 20,000 tonne per hour (tph) capacity in-pit crusher and conveyor system to strip overburden and waste rock. Regarding infrastructure improvements, electrical power will be obtained for actual production from the provincial electric utility, SaskPower which would be provided via overhead lines. The lines would be financed as part of the actual production construction phase and, until then, diesel generators will be required to supply electricity to the camp. In addition, during construction a new road would be built to accommodate heavy equipment and materials traffic. In terms of geology, based on surface and underground core drilling and underground mapping data, the Star and Orion South Kimberlite deposits contain two distinct types of kimberlite; eruptive kimberlite phases and kimberlitic sedimentary rocks. The Star Kimberlite deposit is dominated by crater facies rocks which include well-defined pyroclastic flows that radiate away from the crater. Within the South Orion Kimberlite, the

FORT A LA CORNE phases have cross-cutting relationships near conduits, but are stacked vertically within the volcanic edifice and crater/extracrater deposits. One of the complex phases of the entire procedure has been the preparation of an initial Environmental Impact statement (EIS), followed by a second one in response to questions and inquiries brought forward as a result of the first. An initial draft, based on the Star – Orion South Project Pre-Feasibility Study of March 2010, was submitted to regulators in December 2010, and generated 319 review comments from the federal and provincial officials and 483 review comments and information requests from nine different aboriginal groups. A revised EIS, based on information contained in the August 2011 Feasibility Study of the Star-Orion South Diamond Project, which incorporated responses to all the review comments and information requests was filed on August 10, 2012. The revised EIS also included comprehensive Traditional Land Use information generated as a consequence of Information Gathering Agreements signed with the nine Aboriginal groups. Shore Gold now looks forward to completing the environmental permitting process and, at the same time, is actively seeking opportunities for development capital through participation in the project by a third party or a syndicate of investors.

In order to conserve capital until such financing sources

are developed, the company announced in February 2012, that it was eliminating some staff positions. These included reducing the number of board of directors positions from eight to five; dropping three management team positions; and a reduction of seven general staff positions. The company’s goal is to maintain sufficient staff to continue working toward environmental approval, to continue searching for development finance and to maintain care and maintenance, plus safety and security of the project site.

Once financing is put into place, there is little doubt that

the Star – Orion South Project could become a major source of economic growth for the region, with particular benefits for the aboriginal community in the form of general employment, youth training, and community support. It is estimated that several hundred jobs would become available during the production construction phase and the number of employees required for mine operations over the proposed 20-year life is estimated at 500.

The Fort a la Corne area has come a long way since the

days of the fur traders and if the Star – Orion South project can be brought forward into production, the region’s finest days may well extend far into the future. 6

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Cell: 306-‐858-‐7635 2012-2013 Northern Prospector 57

LA RONGE GOLD BELT

No Where But Up The La Ronge Gold Belt region enjoying booming mining activity By Leonard Melman

any people still retain visions of the Province of Saskatchewan being comprised of vast agricultural holdings spread across flat plains. While that may be true for parts of southern Saskatchewan, visitors to the northern half of the province are in for a delightful surprise in the form of a region of lakes, rivers, forests, wonderful fishing, and a national park, all centred around Lac la Ronge and the community of La Ronge. But fine vacations are only one aspect of this area as the region known as the “Lac La Ronge Gold Belt” is rapidly becoming a specific centre of mining attention within the province. Mineral interest in the La Ronge Gold Belt began in the early part of the 20th century with early exploration based on studies conducted by J. B. Mawdsley and his geological associates working for the Geological Survey of Canada. Several prospective areas were discovered and active production was carried on at the Box Mine from 1930-1942 (42,000 ounces gold), Prince Albert Mine from 1937-1942 (>4,800 oz Au) plus additional areas such as Jolu, Star Lake, and Jasper Mine. Mining activity in the region abated for some time until a new boom erupted in the 1980s coincident with the great gold rally which saw the price of the yellow metal rise to well over $800 U.S. per ounce. At the height of that boom, approximately 60 to 80 companies were actively prospecting and exploring on the ground and several hundred thousand ounces of gold were produced. As the 1980s progressed, metals prices declined and that, combined with some uncertain exploration and production results, caused mining activity to once again diminish. However, during the past several years, a much more sustained era of active exploration and production has developed and, at present, more than one half-dozen companies have taken positions in the La Ronge Gold Belt. A partial list of active companies follows. Claude Resources (TSX; CRJ: AMEX; CGR) has been focused on their major producing asset, the Seabee Gold Operation located some 125 kilometres northeast of the town of La Ronge. Since entering production about two decades ago, the operation has produced approximately 1,000,000 ounces of gold with production ongoing to this time. Claude is also actively working to develop their “Santoy 8 Gold Mine,” about 14 kilometres distantance from the Seabee Operation’s Central Milling Facility. During the second quarter 2012, the company produced 12,166 ounces of gold and showed a net profit of $7 million. Total cash cost per ounce of gold amounted to $1,082 compared

58 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

to a price received of $1,633 per ounce, thereby generating cash flow from operations before net changes in non-cash working capital of $5.3 million or $0.03 per share. The company continues to advance their exploration and development strategy with current attention aimed at expanding and delineating the L62 and Santoy Gap deposits and drill testing the Neptune Target. Infrastructure in the area is favourable with a direct line to the Saskatchewan Power Corporation’s provincial power grid and an all-weather road directly into the project area. Golden Band Resources (TSX-V; GBN: OTCQX; GBRIF) has recently joined the ranks of actively producing mines when the Roy Lloyd Mine entered production in early 2011. Roy Lloyd is part of the Bingo Deposit where historic production dated back to the 1930s era. Highlights from the most recent reporting quarter which ended April 30, 2012, included cash flow from operations of $11,000,000; tonnes processed at the Jolu Mill amounting to 41,336 tonnes with a recovery rate of 93.6 per cent; and total ounces of gold poured at 9,450. With costs per ounce of gold produced amounting to $1,396, one of the first goals of incoming VP-Operations, Matthew Conklin, was undertake a program to reduce operating costs at the Roy Lloyd and Komis mines. The company’s published goal is to ramp up production to the 70 - 100,000 ounces per year area and then maintain that rate through years one through five. Company geologists plan on production for 10-plus years based on existing resources and Golden Band is continuing exploration and development work on its 12 known deposits which encompass four former mines spread over 870 square kilometres of land. Golden Band is also part of a Joint Venture with Masuparia Gold Corporation to explore and develop the Greywacke Lake North Zone deposit. The company has been working the area since 1994 and has established strong relationships with local communities and area First Nations peoples. La Ronge Gold Corp. (TSX-V; LAR) is actively working to develop their three La Ronge Gold Belt area projects known as “Preview SW Gold Project,” “Wedge Lake Gold Project,” and “Greywacke Gold Project.” One of the company’s goals is to update historical estimates at the Preview SW Deposit. Historic estimates (not NI 43-101 qualified) show a resource of 195,912 ounces of gold grading 12.34 grams per tonne gold (g/t Au) and work is now underway to prepare a resource estimate fully in compliance with NI

LA RONGE GOLD BELT 43-101 standards. A 2012 winter-spring diamond-drill program added total strike extensions of 140 metres to the Preview SW Deposit for a total of 390 metres. One drill hole, PR 12-123 hit 6.41 g/t Au over 33.0 meters. During 2012-2013 the company exploration plans for Preview SW include extension drilling, airborne geophysics, possible till sampling, stripping, and trenching with the goal of completing the NI 43-101 resource calculation. Attention is also focused on the “Twin Deposit” at Wedge lake where exploration dates back to 1951, and which also has been the subject of a historic (non NI 43-101 compliant) resource calculation based on work produced by a joint venture between Giant Yellowknife Mines, Golden Rule Resources and SDMC. Wedge Lake sits entirely within the La Ronge Domain of the Reindeer Zone which is a complex region of volcanic, plutonic, and sedimentary rocks. Plans for 2012-13 at Wedge Lake include drilling of 4,000 metres to expand and define resources at the Twin Deposit leading to the completion of an NI 43-101 resource calculation. The Greywacke Project has seen relatively little exploration work to date, but the company now plans to conduct programs to include shallow drilling where alteration features have been defined, as well as an airborne survey, stripping, trenching, and geological mapping to define drill targets. The Jojay Project is a primary focus for Wescan Goldfields Inc. (TSX-V; WGF). Jojay is located in the west central portion

of the La Ronge Domain and has enjoyed a lengthy exploration history. Near the middle of the 20th century, COMINCO began working the area, and after 20-years of exploration, they had identified an ore body later named the “Jojay Gold Deposit” and calculated a resource estimate (not NI 43-101 qualified) of 11,000 Indicated tons grading .26 oz/t Au and an additional 90,000 tons Indicated resources also grading .26 oz/t Au. Wescan commissioned A.C.A. Howe International Limited to complete an NI 43-101 compliant Jojay Property Technical Report which was published early in 2010, and which showed an Indicated mineral resource of 420,000 tonnes grading 3.7 g/t Au plus an Inferred resource of 630,000 tonnes grading 4.3 g/t Au. The company recently completed an eight hole diamond drill program over 1,903 metres. In addition to those companies actively working the region, Explor Resources (TSX-V; ESX) recently entered the La Ronge Gold Belt picture. While their primary areas of activities at present are in Ontario and Quebec, the company recognizes the La Ronge potential and has acquired five prospective properties covering 1,991 Ha and named Scriver Lake, Bielby Lake, Jepson Lakes, West Side, and Pipestone Bay. The Lac La Ronge Gold Belt area is alive with mining activity and with gold holding above $1,700 per ounce in late summer, it appears likely that interest in this dynamic region has nowhere to go but up. 6

WE’VE GOT THE COVERAGE YOU NEED! 2012-2013 Northern Prospector 59

LYNN LAKE

Another Rush Gold mining is in Lynn Lake’s near future

hrough the past decade, Lynn Lake has, on several occasions, approached the proverbial precipice, but after peeking over the edge backed away. This time, with Carlisle Goldfields Ltd. expected to unveil plans for a gold mine in the community, residents are again daring to dream of a return to the more prosperous times when mining was the economic driver of this northern Manitoba community. A true mining town – founded on a major nickel discovery in the 1940s and established with transplanted buildings from Sherridon, almost 200 kilometres to the south when the ore body there began to dwindle – Lynn Lake’s fortunes were always tied to the mining industry. From the 1950s to the 1980s, the town’s population blossomed to 3,500 as 11 distinct ore bodies were brought into production, primarily for nickel. But, as the 20th century drew to an end, so did mining in Lynn Lake. And as those mining operations came to an end, the town saw many residents leave to pursue work elsewhere. Those who stayed behind hung onto the hope that one day another significant strike will revive the industry. Through the first decade of the millennia, announcements were anticipated on several occasions, but they failed to materialize. Twice bitten, thrice shy, as it were, residents looked to other industries for their sustenance and in the process a tourism industry based on magnificent fishing, hunting, and wilderness experiences emerged. That new industry now serves as an added attraction benefit for those who will come to Lynn Lake to work in the mine. Peter Karelse, vice president of Exploration with Carlisle Goldfields, says Black Hawk Drilling has drilled 61,000 metres for the company since March 2011. All drilling was targeted for completion in early August 2012, with up to three drill rigs operating simultaneously through the 16 months. The area of Carlisle’s exploration encompasses 20,000 hectares in the Lynn Lake Greenstone belt. The five drill sites include the former

60 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

gold-producing MacLellan, Farley Lake, and Burnt Timber mines, as well as new sites known as Last Hope and Linkwood, both near the Burnt Timber area just south of Lynn Lake. “It’s our intent to have NI 43-101 compliant resource reports on all five properties,” says Karelse, noting that of the five, four have the potential to provide four million ounces of gold in all categories. The MacLellan site, which Karelse anticipates to be the first on line for production, promises 2.2 million ounces and is currently the subject of a pre-feasibility study and environmental baseline study. “We need permits in place to go to the next phase of development,” explains Karelse. Carlisle Goldfields has the financial resources in place to proceed with the MacLellan mine development and they are currently reviewing their options, he says. “It looks like our best option will be to start as an open pit, then go underground.” He says the identified gold resource runs to at least 400 metres below surface, with several, sparsely located deeper holes indicating the probability of significant gold volume deeper than the identified resource. An additional four holes were drilled in the MacLellan Project area this spring, designed to test the rock mass classification and rock permeability. “The results will be used to determine the design parameters for an open pit. This design will form a part of the pre-feasibility study undertaken by Tetra Tech Wardrop Engineering. The study is currently scheduled for completion by the end of Q4 2012,” says a June 26, 2012, news release from the company. The pre-feasibility study will include a detailed environmental baseline study currently underway over the larger MacLellan Project area so as to best determine potential areas that would be suitable for locations for waste rock, a mill site and a

LYNN LAKE tailings containment area, as well as determining the most appropriate limits of an open pit for the MacLellan Deposit. Karelse anticipates the MacLellan open pit mine operation “is about two years from production.” As for Carlisle’s other projects in Lynn Lake, Last Hope is a new drill program they started in June 2012 when the company reported plans of completing 28 to 35 drill holes. More than 200 holes have been drilled at Last Hope between the 1930s and 1980s. Drilling on the near-surface zone is expected to outline an approximate one kilometre strike length, down to a depth of approximately 300 metres, the company reports. The Burnt Timber drill program has outlined a continuous mineralized zone over an approximate 1,200 metre strike length with an overall average thickness of approximately 35 metres in multiple zones. A small portion of the deposit was mined from a 300 metre long, 30 metre deep open pit in 19981999 with 78,000 oz of gold produced at an average grade of 2.8 gm/T. In addition to Carlisle’s 38 new holes, re-assayed core samples from over 200 historic drill holes completed in the 1980’s by Sherritt Gordon Mines confirmed historic drill results which, in combination with the current Carlisle drilling, can be used in the NI 43-101 compliant resource calculation expected in Q3 of 2012. Linkwood is a relatively new zone that has been re-discovered by Carlisle using IP. Originally discovered by Sherritt Gordon and partially outlined by sparse drilling in the 1980s,

it appears to have a similar east-west strike and 45 degree dip to the north as the Burnt Timber Zone. Carlisle completed 25 holes on this new zone and has outlined significant gold mineralization over a strike length of over 800 metres. A new NI 43101 compliant resource estimate to be completed in Q4 2012. The Farley Lake area was the final focus for the 2012 drill program. In June 2012, Quantec Geoscience of Toronto completed an IP survey for Carlisle over a strike length of eight kilometres covering the majority of the Farley Lake property. The IP method has previously been successful in delineating disseminated sulphide enriched zones, which have proven to host significant gold mineralization at MacLellan, Burnt Timber and Linkwood property areas. Initial results over the former Farley pit and beyond into the surrounding area have indicated an IP signature similar to that encountered at the other sites. While Carlisle takes centre stage in exploration around Lynn Lake, there are others prospecting in the area. Most recently, Cyr Drilling was commissioned to work for Black Smoker Ventures at the former Fox Mine, 40 kilometres south of Lynn Lake. Furthermore, Corazon Mining Ltd. in June announced assay results from exploration drilling at EL Deposit in the Lynn Lake area which confirm a new zone of nickel-copper sulphide mineralization. The Australian mining company says it will use these results to define further targets at depth within EL Deposit. 6

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ocated 740 kilometres north of Winnipeg, Thompson, Manitoba is a modern and progressive city active in its own development. Thompson offers strategic competitive advantages to regional and more northern businesses needing to access local mining supply and service businesses, and

stakeholders engaged with transporting goods and/or services throughout Manitoba’s north and Nunavut. Thompson offers an entrepreneur friendly environment for those looking to set up their own business, and/or expand to serve the needs of mining and mineral exploration.

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62 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

Manitoba Provincial Highway #6 between Thompson and Winnipeg provides affordable and reliable year round ground transportation. This key northsouth ground transportation corridor links to an extensive network of winter roads that link the region during winter months. Thompson is the key hub for intermodal movements of passengers, bulk, perishable and time sensitive freight through Manitoba’s second busiest airport – the Thompson Regional Airport. Regularly scheduled and charter flights involving a variety of aircraft and helicopter are centred here. Convenient, direct air service to Winnipeg, regional communities and air service to Nunavut are available. The national rail link includes the Thompson train station to the Port of Churchill where sealifts from the Port to the Kivalliq Region of Nunavut is additional evidence of the strategic transportation advantages. Serviced and unserviced industrial lots as well as some airside and rail station lots are available for development. Local mining supply and services businesses have grown and prospered over decades of local mining production. This business cluster continues to grow through expansion and new business opportunities, such as the lack of an assay lab. The mining industry understands that time costs money. Prod-

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Snow Lake Preparing for the Boom Snow Lake takes steps to prepare and maximize the economic fortunes coming By MaryAnn Mihychuk M Sc., P Geo., Economic Development Officer, Town of Snow Lake

now Lake is at a key point in its history. The development of the Lalor mine, the re-opening of the

Snow Lake mine, the eminent production at the Reed mine, and the construction of the world’s first bioleach remediation facility provide a powerful framework for growth. Each of these mineral develop-

Global Mining Experts. www.kaltiremining.com

64 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

ment projects will bring significant revenues and jobs into the community and will increase Snow Lake’s capacity to address residential, commercial, industrial, and infrastructure needs which will be required as the town anticipates population growth to 2,100 by 2014. The town is actively engaged in

building on the economic opportunity and has developed an economic strategy complementary to maximize benefits from the mining developments. Snow Lake has adopted three major economic “new north” development initiatives aimed at strengthening its role and resources to be a leading Manitoba community: •C ore Services Hub – market Snow Lake as a mineral supply and service centre •C entre of Expertise – develop a Mining remediation research centre in Snow Lake •G rowth and Development – focus on Snow Lake as a centre for business recruitment. It is anticipated that with the expansion of economic activity, direct jobs in Snow Lake will increase from its current level of approximately 274 mineralrelated jobs with an increase of 260 per cent to a level of 736 mineral-related jobs by 2015. These mineral-related jobs will bring growth in secondary services and support jobs and opportunities tripling the population.

Snow Lake

As Snow Lake grows to become a pivotal resource centre in Manitoba, akin, but admittedly smaller, to Fort McMurray in Alberta; the opportunities to explore and mine the Snow Lake Greenstone Belt will prove attractive to investors, businesses, and human capital across Canada. Over the next three years, the Snow Lake Greenstone Belt is poised to become the home of one of Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most successful mining ventures. This exciting new potential and diversified Economic Development Plan addresses what the future will look like

and recommends how Snow Lake can build towards a successful rolled-out expansion that increases jobs, strengthens economic growth and builds a positive platform for ongoing community development and sustainability. At the present time, Snow Lake has four major mineral projects in different phases of development, in addition to approximately 37 exploration companies operating in the area. Further information on producer history and significant deposits is provided. Currently, HudBay is developing the Lalor Mine and Con-

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Snow Lake

Lalor Concentrator and Mine The discovery of the Lalor zinc, copper, and gold deposit in 2007 by HudBay, recognized as the PDAC Discovery of the Year, has ignited a rebirth of the town of Snow Lake with a declared capital investment by HudBay of $704 million dollars with a declared mine life of 20-years. With the completion of the production ramp from the Chisel mine to the Lalor mine, the opportunities for mine resource development mineral-related employment growth, and the expansion of Snow Lake are dependent on building a close partnership between industry and the community. To date, HudBay em-

ploys 102 persons at the Chisel Mine and the Snow Lake Concentrator, with employment projected to grow to 300 positions by the second quarter of 2015.

Reed Mine HudBay is exploring the deposits at the Reed Mine in partnership with VMS Ventures Inc. This mine is a high-grade copper deposit and initial product is anticipated by late 2013. The mine has a five year life and is located halfway between Snow Lake and FlinFlon.

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66 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

the Snow Lake mine, as well as an oreprocessing mill located in the community. Alexis Minerals indicates it will invest $45 million dollars to reactivate the mine. At present, this mine already has 15 employees and has a projected staff complement of 260 with 100 staff on site on a rotational basis housed in a mining camp by 2014.

BacTech Environmental Corporation BacTech Manitoba (wholly owned by BacTech Environmental Corporation) is in the process of investing $21 million dollars in the development of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first bioleach remediation facility in Snow Lake. The company has committed to supporting a Centre of Excellence in Bioleach in Manitoba based on its technology used in Snow Lake. The company will use a patented BACOX bioleaching technology to mitigate acid mine drainage in arsenic-laden mine tailings, while also being able to collect residual gold deposits for the mineral market. The BacTech plant will employ approximately 30 people when the plant is completed in late 2013 and the company is actively searching to extend the life of the plant by sourcing additional tailings for processing. For more information visit www. snowlake.ca. 6

Snow Lake A Change in Plans VMS Ventures moves from exploration to production

MS Ventures (VMS:TSX.V) is transitioning from a pure exploration company to becoming a developer and producer in the coming year. Over the last 12-months several milestones were reached by the company in its corporate development.

Reed Copper Project In December 2011, the company announced that a decision to construct the Reed Copper Mine Project had been given by the project operator and majority stake holder Hudbay Minerals, along with approval for $71 million in capital investment for the project. The Reed Copper Mine Project is a joint venture between VMS Ventures Inc., and Hudbay Minerals who is the project operator and is financing VMS Ventures share of the costs of building the mine, through to production. Hudbay Minerals holds a 70 per cent interest in the project, VMS owns 30 per cent.

Explorer to Producer: Discovering Copper in Manitoba, Canada The Reed Copper Deposit: Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Next Copper Mine

VMS:TSX.V

Joint Venture Agreement between VMS Ventures Inc. and Hudbay Minerals Inc. (NYSE: HBM) to develop the high grade Reed Copper Deposit, near Snow Lake, Manitoba Positive pre-feasibility study with reserves of 2,157,000 tonnes grading 3.83% Cu. Advanced Exploration Permit approved in to allow for a 10,000 tonne bulk sample. Inital production expected in Q3 2013; full production expected in Q1 2014. VMS owns approx. 27M shares of North American Nickel Inc. (NAN:TSX.V); VMS has approx. $10.5M in the treasury. NAN is exploring the Maniitsoq property, an exclusive 4,983 sq. km exploration license in southwest Greenland. Over 3,500 line kilometres airborne geophysics flown in July 2012; 75 conductive zones have now been identified. A 2,000 m diamond drill program took place at Maniitsoq during Aug/Sept, 2012. For more information, please visit us at table P25 at the Manitoba Mines and Minerals Convention Nov. 15-17, 2012,visit our websites, www.vmsventures.com and www.northamericannickel.com, or call us toll free at 1-866-816-0118.

David Garofalo, HudBay President & CEO, and Rick Mark, VMS Ventures CEO & Chair after the ribbon cutting ceremony at the Reed Copper Deposit. August 14, 2012

2012-2013 Northern Prospector 67

Snow Lake

The decision to go progress with the mine construction was based on the positive economics outlined in the 43-101 compliant Preliminary Economic Assessment (“PEA”) authored by Hudbay Minerals for the Reed project. Highlights from the PEA report include daily production of ore of 1,300 tonnes by late 2013 at an average expected grade of 3.78 per cent copper, 0.45 g/t gold and 5.77 g/t silver. In early 2012, government approval for Reed Copper Advanced Exploration Permit closure plan had been granted along with issue of a lease for the operation of mine development activities on the property. With this permit approved, the extraction of a 10,000 tonne bulk sample is allowed to further test ore metallurgy and confirm the mineralization widths, metal grades, and ground conditions of the rock hosting the mine. In April 2012, a more comprehensive Pre-Feasibility study was completed by Hudbay and Stantec Consulting Ltd., which outlined positive economics for the Reed Copper Project. Using the stricter parameters of a mineral reserves study the deposit was calculated to contain 2,157,000 tonnes in the Probable category grading 3.83 per cent copper, 0.48 g/t gold and 6.02 g/t silver. Additional drilling at the mine will be required to bring the inferred mineralization left out of the Pre-Feasibility study reserve calculation into the Mineral Reserves estimate for the mine. Other highlights of the Pre-Feasibility Study include an estimate of initial production at Reed Copper Mine in the third quarter of 2013 and that metal recoveries of 94 per cent copper, 58 per cent gold, and 62 per cent silver are assumed for the ore processed at the Flin Flon Concentrator. Run of mine ore will be transported by truck to Flin Flon facility for processing. The proposed construction schedule in the Pre-Feasibility shows January 2014, as the proposed completion date of construction. Under the mine development plan, the next year’s milestones will include completion of the first phase of underground development down to the 260 metre level of the mine, and ex68 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

traction of a 10,000 tonne bulk sample of material from each of the three zones of mineralization. Production at the Reed Copper Mine is scheduled to begin at the 260 metre level to access Zones 10 and 20 and at the 30 metre level access the 30 Zone. Zone 10 host high grade copper and so will be mined early in the life of mine for a faster payback of capital expenditures.

Snow Lake and Sudbury Exploration for new deposits in the Flin Flon – Snow Lake Greenstone Belt continued in 2012, and drilling of new targets on the company’s large land package in Manitoba will begin again in early 2013. Highlights from 2012 include high-grade gold sampled from prospecting trenches at the company’s Sails Lake property east of Snow Lake, and a 1.2 metre intersection grading 12.63 per cent zinc, 0.76 per cent copper, 1.44 g/t gold, and 5.45 g/t silver at the Reed North prospect being jointly explored with Hudbay Minerals who have optioned the property from VMS.

North American Nickel Another area with significant growth potential for the company is its 26 million share investment in North American Nickel (NAN:TSX.V). This summer the company’s Greenland based Maniitsoq project received worldwide attention in the media. In late June 2012, a group of European geoscientists published the findings of a three year research project focusing on the Maniitsoq region of Greenland and its geology. Their research showed the area is host to the oldest meteor impact ever discovered on Earth, dated at one billion years earlier that the previously oldest recognized impact site. Further, the impact was extensive, estimated to have created an original crater of up to 200 kilometres in diameter which may have important implications for an exploration company looking for the worlds next nickel mining camp.

Snow Lake In early 2012, government approval for Reed Copper Advanced Exploration Permit closure plan had been granted along with issue of a lease for the operation of mine development activities on the property. North American Nickel is focused on belt of nickel bearing intrusions which have been mapped over an area 75 kilometres by 15 kilometres. These intrusive bodies host numerous nickel-copper showings distributed throughout the belt. The area has undergone very limited exploration with last drilling taking place over 40-years ago. In 2011, North American Nickel flew a test survey over eight per cent of the property. The goal was to determine if a modern helicopter-borne geophysical system survey would be able to identify previously undetected magnetic and conductive bedrock anomalies. The survey was a success and so this summer a follow up survey consisting of over 3,500 line kilometres of flight lines were undertaken over a larger area of the property, with a follow-up drill program testing the best of the conductors planned for early fall of 2012.

Previous drilling on the property conducted between 1965 and 1972 were successful in intersecting significant nickelcopper mineralization though the drilling was very shallow and used small diameter back pack drills. Historical drilling highlights include intercepts of 2.67 per cent nickel over 9.85 metres, and 2.24 per cent nickel over 12.89 metres. The next year bodes to be one of transition and offer the potential for tremendous growth for the company. 6

2012-2013 Northern Prospector 69

MacPHERSON, LESLIE & TYERMAN LLP

Teaming UP Joint Venture Agreements: What You Need to Know By MacPherson Leslie and Tyerman LLP

o, you’ve decided to further your exploration plans or move into production. You’ve found a potential partner and signed a letter of intent and a confidentiality agreement, and have decided to define your relationship by way of a joint venture agreement. What now? Joint venture agreements tend, by necessity, to be long and complex agreements. What do you need to focus on? What are the critical elements that should not be overlooked? A joint venture relationship is created solely by contract, unlike a corporation or partnership which are created, in part, under a statutory regime. The statutory regimes for corporations and partnerships have extensive provisions that govern the relationship among shareholders, and between shareholders and directors (for corporations), and among partners in the case of partnerships. There is no such regime for joint ventures. Accordingly, the agreement creating the joint venture must set out all of the rights and responsibilities of the parties and all of the provisions that will govern the relationship between them. The joint venture agreement should set out the project or object of the joint venture in enough detail so that it will be clear whether a particular matter is governed by the agreement, but should also be broad enough to allow for some future flexibility. The agreement should clearly define the date on which the joint venture agreement is effective and the term of the joint venture, as well as the name under which the joint venture will carry on business. It may be necessary to register the joint venture name under the applicable business names registration statute. The key criteria for determining whether parties are conducting their business in partnership or they are associated in a joint venture relationship is the intent of the parties. The joint venture agreement should state that the parties do not intend to create a partnership and that nothing in the agreement should be deemed to constitute the joint venture participants as partners or agents of one another. One important area in the establishment of a joint venture relationship is division of responsibilities and control, including a decision as to who will be the operator and how decisions will be made. Will there be a management committee? If so, who will be appointed to the committee? Will all decisions be by majority vote or will some decisions be made by a supermajority vote or require unanimous approval?

70 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

If you have a minority interest in the project it may be advantageous to negotiate for a super-majority vote or unanimous consent for fundamental decisions such as disposition of major assets, mergers or consolidations with other businesses, liquidation, or increases in capitalization. Minority non-operator participants, in particular, will also want to ensure that they receive adequate reporting to monitor the activities of the joint venture, and may want a super-majority vote or unanimous consent for strategic planning matters. The joint venture agreement should also carefully delineate the contributions of the respective joint venture participants to the venture and the division of revenues and expenses. All participants should ensure decommissioning costs are adequately addressed and, in particular, that they will continue to be so in the event that one or more of the participants ceases to participate before the project is completed. Joint ventures can be excellent contracting vehicles that combine the efforts and strengths of two or more parties on a single enterprise. In order to accomplish this, joint venture participants should structure their joint venture agreement with care, properly addressing potential pitfalls. While having these protections does not guarantee that the joint venture will be successful, it greatly improves the likelihood.

Joint Venture or Partnership? Businesses may structure their operations by using any one or combination of legal forms. For many reasons, including a desire to share what can be significant costs in natural resource exploration and development, businesses often work with one another when conducting natural resource operations. Two very popular business vehicles for carrying on business in association with others are the joint venture (commonly known as a “JV”) and the general partnership. It is not always easy to distinguish between a partnership and a JV. The law is not consistent. One thing is clear: each business venture will be determined on its own facts and no one factor will be determinative.

What are JVs and Partnerships? A partnership is a relationship that exists between persons carrying on a business in common with a view to making a profit. A JV, on the other hand, is most often defined not by what it is, but by what it is not. It is not a partnership, although it has been described as being “in the nature of a partnership.”

MacPHERSON, LESLIE & TYERMAN LLP Why is the Distinction Important? There are three aspects that are different for partnerships and JVs, each of which should be carefully considered before entering into a business arrangement. These are liability among participants, liability of participants to third parties, and tax.

Liability Among Participants: Two aspects of this liability

are important. In a partnership, every partner is jointly liable with the other partners for all debts and obligations of the partnership incurred while the partner is a partner. This is not the case for a JV participant. Ordinarily JV participants will not be jointly liable with each other for the debts and obligations of the JV unless they have contractually agreed to such liability. Partners in a partnership are agents for one another and owe fiduciary duties to each other that require them to exercise their discretion as agents in the best interests of the partnership as a whole. This requires, among other things, that partners not compete directly with the partnership. This is not necessarily the case for JV participants, since there is no mutual agency among them and no general ability for a JV participant to bind the others (this will exist only through an express grant in the JV agreement).

Liability to Third Parties: Partners are liable for the wrongful acts or omissions of other partners acting in the ordinary course of the business of the partnership. There are no such obligations for joint venturers; a JV participant would only be liable for the wrongful acts of another JV participant if both were involved in the wrongful act. The tax treatment of JVs and partnerships is different not only for income tax purposes but also for GST. Tax is often a critical consideration in structuring business affairs.

What are the Criteria? The intent of the parties is the single most important factor in determining whether parties are conducting their business as partners or as participants in a JV relationship. While intent is determined by reviewing all relevant factors, the most critical indicator of intent is the agreement itself. The agreement must be clear and concise and properly reflect the intended relationship between the parties. Consulting legal and financial advisors at the early stages of the business venture is critical to ensure parties achieve the intended result for the structure of their operations. The consequences of having the relationship characterized by a court as something other than what was intended could be significant from both a liability and tax perspective. 6

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2012-2013 Northern Prospector 71

COPPER REEF MINING CORPORATION

Copper Reef Mining Corporation Focusing on four major gold projects

opper Reef Mining Corporation, based in Flin Flon, Manitoba, holds exploration properties throughout the Lynn Lake and Flin Flon Greenstone Belt both in Manitoba and Saskatchewan. Shown above in various colours are Copper Reef â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Base Metal Properties in the main camp. Shown in red are the gold properties. The base metal properties are available for option with deals in the works. This year Copper Reef has concentrated on its gold properties. More information on any of the active projects can be found at our website. www.copperreef.com.

Gold Properties Copper Reef has six main gold properties, two of which are inactive. The four active projects include Otter Lake on the Gurney â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Century Gold Mine Trend and the Alberts Lake both in the Main Flin Flon Camp, with the Gold Rock and North Star Projects in the Snow Lake Camp

Otter Lake

The Otter Lake Gold group of claims (Twin Lakes) is located 20 kilometres south of Flin Flon, Manitoba. So far three main gold bearing quartz carbonate veins have been located. Recent work has concentrated eon the Parres vein which assays up to 3.33 oz. of Au and 13.9 oz. of Ag which averages 80 centimetres in width exposed over 100 meter strike length. Samples taken at 10 meter intervals resulted in relatively high-grade gold values as shown in the table below. 72 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

COPPER REEF MINING CORPORATION

Sample #

Au (g/t)

Ag (g/t)

539410 539401

7.17 0.83

39.6 6.8

539402 539403 539404

33.9 33.89 49.5

165.1 179.3 245.7

539405 539406

114.2 46.61

477 357.1

539407 539408 539409

24.61 3.1 <.03

140 5.3 1.5

Alberts Lake

The Albert’s Lake 2011 drilling program completed its objectives of testing the Gold Shear Zone. Copper Reef Mining Corporation drilled four twin drillholes on the Albert’s Lake gold zone. Previous non 43-101 resources by Granges outlined approximately 400,000 tonnes of 7.5 g gold.

RESULTS From (m)

To (m)

Interval

Au (g/t)

AL-11-61BTW Average

253.2

304.7

51.5

1.02

2.4

AL-11-40TW

219.7

250.6

30.9

1.39

2.3

AL-11-57TW AL-11-72TW

Average

Ag (g/t)

Average

178.5

206.4

27.9

3.46

9.1

Includes

193.03

205.4

12.37

6.74

18.1

Average

198.1

224.5

26.4

1.14

2.2

Includes

212.1

213.95

1.85

4.55

7.1

2012-2013 Northern Prospector 73

COPPER REEF MINING CORPORATION North Star Gold Property

The North Star Gold Property is located 36 kilometres west of Snow Lake, Manitoba. Gold mineralization hosted in gabbro within a typical Proterozoic shear zone system – gold-rich quartz veins are in extensional domain and weak mineralization along contractional domain. Gold in both The North Star and The Gold Rock property occurs in similar structure and quartz veining. All weather roads to site and environmental surveys completed. • Existing underground development to 100 foot level • Bulk sample surface gave an average undiluted grade of 0.36 oz/t Au • More drilling would be needed to prove up other resources and additional zones • Required a new NI 43-101 in order to include Gold Rock gold Resources • Previous NI 43-101 was done on North Star in 2005

Gold Rock Property is 800 meters northeast of North Star Property. Selected Drillholes from Gold Rock 2010 Winter Drilling is Listed in the table below:

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COPPER REEF MINING CORPORATION Base Metal Deposits and Underlying Royalty Properties.

Copper Reef Mining Corporation has an underlying royalty of $0.75/t from the McIlvenna Bay Deposit (currently with a tonnage

of 12.5 million tonnes of Zn-Cu-Silver rich resource and 9.1 million tonnes of Cu –Gold stringer resource) and a two per cent NSR on Foran’s two-million-ton Bigstone copper deposit and the Balsam deposit. The Properties on which Copper Reef holds Royalties are shown in yellow, The 100 per cent owned Hanson Lake Property on strike with the McIlvenna Deposit is shown in red and which is the former site of the Hanson Lake Mine (produced 147,000 tons of 10 per cent Zn, 5.8 per cent Pb, 0.5 per cent Cu and 137 g/t Ag). Copper Reef in the past three years has been drilling off the South Bay Zone on its Hanson Lake Property.

SYMBOL: CZC: CNSX CORPORATION INFORMATION

DIRECTORS & OFFICERS

12 Mitchel Road, P.O. Box 306 Flin Flpn, Manitoba R8A 1N1

Robert N. Granger, QC — Chairman & Director Stephen Masson, MSC., P.Geo — President, CEO & Director David W. Kendall, FCA — CFO & Treasurer Lara Shaffer — Corporate Secretary William J. Jackson, B.A.Sc. — Assistant Secretary Harry Barr — Director David S. Kennedy — Director Edward G. Thompson — Director William J. Phillips — Director Greg Campbell — Director

Tel: 204-687-3500 | Fax: 204-687-4762 Email: more@mymts.net | Web: www.copperreef.com Listing date: Friday, February 22, 2008 Auditors: McGovern, Hurley, Cunningham LLP in Toronto Solicitors: Taylor McCaffrey LLP in Winnipeg Transfer Agent: Equity Transfer and Trust Co. in Toronto Investor Relations: 204-687-3500

2012-2013 Northern Prospector 75

WINGS OVER KISSISSING

Where Road, Railway and Airports End

There are no limits with Wings Over Kississing

ings Over Kississing offers flight services to the most remote regions of Canada’s north. With bases in Flin Flon, Thompson, Lynn Lake, and Churchill, this Manitoba-based airline takes off where road, railway and airports end. “No matter where you need to go, how much cargo you’re carrying, or when you need to arrive, we can do the job,” says Wings Over Kississing senior line pilot Mat Dehaene. “We offer a full spectrum of services, including helicopter, float and wheel-ski flights. And we don’t shy away from the challenging jobs. That’s what makes things interesting.” Thanks to its full fleet, strategic base locations and charter availability, Wings Over Kississing aptly serves the mining, forestry, hydro, and tourism industries, and provides patient and cargo transportation for First Nations communities. The company is also well known for its fishing, hunting, and outdoor recreation flights. Curt Enns, owner and operator of Wings Over Kississing, has been working, living, and thriving in Canada’s north for

76 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

more than 30-years. Since 1990, the Enns family has helmed Kississing Lake Lodge in northern Manitoba. The picturesque five-star resort has gained acclaim as a destination for trophy-size walleye, northern pike, and lake trout. In 2007, Enns launched Wings Over Kississing to increase access to the north’s beauty and resources. All needs can be met by the Wings Over Kississing fleet, be it heavy hauling, sling loads, passenger flights, surveys and observation, or aerial cinematography. Its specialized aircraft includes Cessnas, Piston and Turbine Beavers, Turbo Otters and Bell helicopters. Every far-flung location, at any time of year, is possible with Wings Over Kississing. “We have four bases and unlimited locations we can fly into because of our plane capabilities. We’re the only northern airline that offers float flights, so if you want to get somewhere with no runways, we can do it. The roads in Manitoba end at Flin Flon and Lynn Lake, so if you’re aiming farther north, we’re the airline for you,” says Wings Over Kississing senior line pilot Reg Willams. “And, in winter, we offer wheel-ski flights, so we can get you places that are generally accessible only by helicopter, but you can bring in all your cargo, as well.” It’s clear that customers appreciate the professional, discreet, and courteous service they receive at Wings Over Kississing. A typical week in June includes more than 100 flights. At each base, customers appreciate free and secure parking, shuttle vans, easy check-ins, cargo and luggage assistance and free wireless Internet services. If time is on your side, enjoy a game of ping-pong and a cup of coffee. Wings Over Kississing has an exceptional safety record, thanks to a diligent maintenance team, constantly updated quality assurance programs, and excellent communication within the organization. Knowledgeable, licensed professionals maintain the aircraft, and the airline operates strictly by Transport Canada guidelines.

WINGS OVER KISSISSING

“Actually, we use the SkyTrack system, which is a real time

satellite tracking system that monitors every flight in our fleet,” says Wings Over Kississing Quality Assurance Manager Anna Klassen. “It’s not required by Transport Canada, but we go over and beyond for our customers’ safety.”

Wings Over Kississing enjoys a high retention rate, com-

pared with other air services in the north, both internally with employees, and with customers.

“Everyone here loves their work, and our customers can

tell. They say we’re a great team,” says Wings Over Kississing Operations Manager Claudia Horsch. “We’ve got a low employee turnover rate, and I think that says a lot about Wings Over Kississing. You often see airlines up here get a pilot for one year and then they’re gone again to a bigger market. But

Reliable, Flexible, Eﬃcient, Committed, Friendly

I’ve been here for 10-years and our other pilots range from three to eight years with the company. Our customers appreciate seeing a familiar face; it’s a comfort.”

Wings Over Kississing delivers services beyond transpor-

tation too. With its background in hospitality, the company can take care of all logistics required for an expedition.

“We’ve seen it all, including camp set-up, from accommo-

dation to grocery orders and outdoor toilets. We can provide camp managers and cooks, if required, or you maybe you can enjoy a stay at our lodge,” says Wings Over Kississing Thompson airport base Manager Linda Funk. “We’ve learned the mining industry is a complicated, intricate, discreet industry. We can provide full-service options so you can focus on your expedition or we can offer support where you need it. Either way, we’re ready for you.” For more information, please visit wingsoverkississing.com or call 1-866-323-4210. 6

www.wingsoverkississing.com (204) 687-8247 2012-2013 Northern Prospector 77

RANA MINE REFUGE SYSTEMS

Inhale – Exhale The importance of breathable air in an underground mine environment By Randy Waylett, sales manager, RANA Mine Refuge Systems

omething we don’t visibly see is generally something we don’t worry about. Typical non-contaminated, safe dry air is something we don’t see and it is often taken for granted. However in its absence, breathable air quickly becomes an alarming concern. Just talk to someone who is having an asthma attack, or someone who is choking and can’t breathe, or try holding your breath for just a few moments and we can quickly become aware of the critical importance of having a safe breathable air supply. The normal atmospheric air we breathe is made up of the following gases: • Nitrogen (78 per cent) • Oxygen (21 per cent) • Argon (0.94 per cent)

78 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

• Carbon Dioxide (0.04 per cent) • Other trace gases (0.02 per cent) When we breathe in air, our bodies consume oxygen and convert it to carbon dioxide. Exhaled air contains approximately 4.5 per cent carbon dioxide. Our bodies do not do anything with the Nitrogen or Argon gases. In underground mines it is critically important to have mine design engineers and developers consider and provide the ongoing existence of a safe breathable air supply whenever a mine worker or other human occupants are present in the mine. Mine design must always include proper mine ventilation under normal conditions, as well as during a mining emergency, or during an interruption of the mine ventilation services.

During an underground emergency

(mine collapse, explosion, underground fire, loss of ventilation system, etc.) contingencies must be made to ensure the safety of the underground occupants. This is usually done by designing safe haven areas, known as mine refuge stations or chambers (stationary or mobile).

Mine refuge stations are typically

“sealed” chambers where mine occupants can gather and seek refuge during an emergency situation. Generally, these areas are designed for a maximum number of persons and for a specific period of time (24, 36, 48, or 72 hours). When persons take refuge in these areas, a source of safe breathable air must be provided.

RANA MINE REFUGE SYSTEMS

A sealed chamber containing people has a limited air supply. Therefore there are three things that must happen in order to maintain safe breathable air and sustain life: Oxygen needs to be replenished as it is consumed; if the percentage of oxygen in the air falls below 19.5 per cent, people begin to experience physical abnormalities. Below 10 per cent people become unconsciousness, and/or death. Carbon dioxide must be removed from the air and be maintained below 5,000 PPM concentration (<one per cent CO2). Maximum allowable values would be 20,000 PPM concentration (<two per cent CO2), however some physical discomfort may be experienced by the occupants at this level and higher. The moisture we exhale should also be removed. Humidity levels are gener-

ally controlled by either purging the air or by the use of an air conditioning unit. When considering the components of safe breathable air, there are some major elements of that air that must be considered. First of all, we need to know what’s happening to the breathable air within that sealed chamber during the process of normal human breathing. As persons within the refuge station breath, oxygen (O2) gas is absorbed by the human body in order to function properly and sustain life. Through this process the oxygen gas level within the breathable air is being depleted. At the same time, carbon dioxide (CO2) is being exhaled; therefore carbon dioxide levels within the breathable air space begin to rise. These two critical elements within the breathable air must be considered and compensated for.

Loring Laboratories Ltd 629 Beaverdam Road NE, Calgary, Alberta

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80 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

• COAL BED METHANE • COAL ANALYSIS • OIL & GAS ANALYSIS

Other Location: Guyana, South America Email: loringlabs@telus.net

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www.loringlabs.net

Traditionally these elements have been compensated for through the use of providing adequate “dead air” space, or mine compressed air, or the use of oxygen candles. However, none of these traditional methods adequately deal with the elements of concern as mentioned above, especially if the air becomes contaminated or the loss of the mine air supply happens. The most effective way to deal with the oxygen gas depletion and the build-up of carbon dioxide levels is to use a system that processes the air, such as the RANA Refuge One Breathable Air Centre, by removing the carbon dioxide and replenishing the oxygen gas supply at easily controlled levels. By using a system that processes the air, carbon dioxide is removed to maintain a CO2 level of less than 5,000 PPM or one, and oxygen gas is replenished to maintain O2 levels between 19.5 per cent and 21 per cent. RANA’s Refuge One Breathable Air Centre uses the refuge station’s electrical supply to normally run the unit. However, if the electrical supply is terminated, a battery back-up system within the unit takes over to continue the operation for the specified period of time. This process ensures the occupants of the mine refuge station have an adequate breathable air supply as they await the mine safety operations or rescue being provided. 6

CHURCHILL GATEWAY DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION

Port of Churchill Investing in resources, people, and supply chain to help customers realize the advantage

he Port of Churchill is located in Northern Manitoba on the west coast of Hudson Bay. The port eliminates time-consuming navigation, additional handling, and high-cost transportation through the St. Lawrence Seaway, while avoiding high levels of congestion at western sea ports. Churchill is strategically located in close proximity to both origin and destination of many large economic markets providing as a competitive transportation solution. The Port of Churchill has invested in resources, people, and supply chain to help customers realize the advantage in using the Port of Churchill.

Investing in Resources The Port of Churchill has had a busy year finishing and beginning new infrastructure projects. Hudson Bay Railway Line Rehabilitation a $60 million project has increased efficiency on the rail line connecting The Pas and Churchill. The Port of Churchill is preparing for various activities including, restoration of the cleaners, a concrete restoration project, and an engineering study. 2012 will be one of the largest capital intensive years for the Port in over 15-years.

Investing in People Churchill Gateway Development Corporation, marketer of the Port of Churchill and OmniTRAX Canada, owner and operator of the Port and Hudson Bay Railway have been expanding their Winnipeg-based office. New employees bring a wealth of knowledge as they expand their network in prepara-

tion for the changing environment and economy. Growing the network of talented employees will help ensure sustainability for the Port of Churchill into the future.

Investing in Supply Chain As of March 2012, OmniTRAX welcomes OmniTRAX Canada Freight Services, a new freight services company to the Northern Trade Corridor. OmniTRAX Canada Freight Services has built a reliable network that provides shippers and carriers with cost effective and timely transportation solutions. OmniTRAX Canada Freight Services works seamlessly with Hudson Bay Railway and the Port of Churchill to provide freight services to northern Manitoba and Nunavut communities.

Realizing the Advantage By importing or exporting through the Port of Churchill, or utilizing its established supply chain, organizations can save time and money. The port can handle various cargos and shipments including: break bulk cargo, bulk commodities, freight, mining commodities, and equipment. The Port of Churchill would like to work with companies in the mining sector to establish strong synergetic partnerships. To learn more about the Port of Churchill please visit www.portofchurchill.ca or contact Churchill Gateway Development Corporation at (204) 947-0033. 6

2012-2013 Northern Prospector 81

PAJARI INSTRUMENTS LTD.

On The Level Pajari Instruments Ltd. introduces e-SYNC, a new survey system

ajari Instruments Ltd. has been building instrumentation for the mining, exploration, directional drilling and oil and gas markets for over 65 years. They design, build and service all instrumentation in house at the company’s facility in Orillia, Ontario. The e-SYNC, the newest instrument to come into production, measures inclination and tool-facing (roll) with dependable, known accuracy. For all of its unique features, it is surprisingly affordable for those jobs requiring inclination and/ or tool-facing in core orientation, wedging, directional drilling, camera orientation and casings cut-outs. The e-SYNC was designed and built to perform reliably in fast paced and physically demanding conditions and its distinction in this area has been field-proven. An important feature of the design is that the hardened stainless steel housing is not opened as all procedures are accessed from outside the instrument housing and all components operate on rechargeable batteries – no pressure container needed. Water damage is a thing of the past. The e-SYNC operator can configure the survey into three

e-SYNC Surveying Instrument Inclination and Toolface Measurements In Boreholes Drilled In Any Direction

BENEFITS • • • • • • • •

A cost effective solution for continuous or periodic service. Embedded wireless communication eliminates the need for on-site user access into the body of the instrument. Survey results can be displayed without removing the instrument from the survey train. User interface provides easy instructions eliminating the need for specializing training. Time stamping and other security features give confidence that the surveys are performed as specified. A self-test is performed on the instrument sensors before each survey which increases reliability. The stability indicator indicates whether or not the instrument moved while the survey was being recorded. Instrument design includes redundant sensor axes. User friendly touch screen incorporates large buttons for ease of use in a variety of environments. Surveys can be downloaded to either a computer or laptop for further processing. INTroDuCTorY PrICE e-SYNC-t, Inclination & roll $13,887.50 e-SYNC-i, Inclination only $13,387.50 Limited time offer. Subject to change without notice.

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pajari instruments ltd. Head Office - 4152 Carlyon Line Orilla, ON, Canada +1-705-325-3222 (Tel) +1-705-325-8789 (Fax) sales@pajari.com | www.pajari.com

different modes. The data can be obtained through a single shot timed survey, where the operator sets the time delay on the surface with enough time to get to the survey location, places the instrument in the survey location and waits for the time to countdown. The time it takes to actually record the survey is less then a minute, so the limiting factor is how fast you can get the tool to the survey location. The e-SYNC also has a multishot timed function where it can record up to 1,000 surveys in a single trip down (or up) the hole. This mode operates much in the same way as the single shot, except that the operator will be stopping a definable number of times at user definable time intervals. Finally, there is an automatic mode where the e-SYNC senses non-movement of the instrument for one minute to activate a survey reading. After any of these methods, the instrument is then retrieved, and the data is downloaded to the hand held computer. The operator then can view the survey, and save it to the hand held computer for later review. The data is also date and time stamped to give the project management some piece of mind that the surveys were done when expected. At Pajari Instruments, the company pride themselves on providing the customer a complete survey solution. Along with e-SYNC, they stock a multitude of survey accessories from core retrieval and orientation to hole inclination survey, wedge setting and directional drilling applications. They can also provide customers with customization of existing products, or custom designed products. “We are very knowledgeable in surveying methods and best practices and we have been educating the industry for over 65 years. We can help you understand the need and the limitations of current surveying methods, and how best to maximize your accuracy or speed,” says Sherry-Anne Pajari, Pajari Instruments Ltd. 6

POWER & MINE SUPPLY CO. LTD.

Meet The Application Power & Mine Supply Co. Ltd. offers the right product for clientâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s needs

ince 1929, Power & Mine Supply Co. Ltd. has been a leader in supplying engineered equipment to

all major industries throughout central Canada. With locations in Winnipeg,

Service of equipment sold is pro-

vided by their service solutions team who offer upgrades, inspection and testing services, custom skid manufacturing, laser alignments, repairs and much

Regina, Saskatoon and Thunder Bay they

more. The factory trained team has a

ensure local support to all of their cus-

fully automated shop at their disposal;

tomers.

pump testing tanks, welding areas, paint

booth, machining area and the only mechanical seal repair facility in central Canada. Power & Mine is not your standard distributor. In addition to offering the standard services you would expect from a distributor, they pride themselves on being a problem solving partner to customers, consulting engineers and OEMs. Supplying the right product to meet the application, while taking into account equipment life cycle cost is there focus. The industry leading product lines they represent show their commitment to ensure some of the best products on the market are made available into central Canada. Pumps, mechanical seals, valves, cooling towers to name a few of the products offered in their portfolio. Information is at your fingertips on all products offered by Power & Mine and can be found on their website www. powerandmine.ca. Here you will find technical documents, drawings, manuals and the latest information on new products released to the industry. 6

Your Partner in Pump & Seal Applications Power & Mine specializes in the application of process equipment including pumps, mechanical seals, valves and more. We have over 80 years of experience partnering with our customers to provide unmatched support and service of all products we supply.

www.powerandmine.ca

Serving Central Canada Since 1929

Saskatoon Tel: 306.244.7274 Fax: 306.244.9911

Regina Tel: 306.791.0417 Fax: 306.791.0418

Winnipeg Tel: 204.694.9300 Fax: 204.694.7876

Thunder Bay Tel: 807.622.4044 Fax: 807.622.3235

We are proud to represent the following industry leading brands

Head Office: Unit 4-75 Meridian Drive, Winnipeg, MB R2R 2V9 2012-2013 Northern Prospector 83

G&B PORTABLE FABRIC BUILDINGS

Give Me Shelter Cover up against the elements with G&B Portable Fabric Buildings

limate change is affecting the weather patterns all over the world, including Manitoba and Saskatchewan, causing extreme weather events which continue to take a toll on the mining industry. As these forces converge, mining executives must look beyond the traditional scenarios they have used in their planning. To prepare for previously unanticipated risks, companies must be willing to seek unconventional solutions to their conventional challenges. G&B Portable Fabric Buildings offers a unique solution. G&B Portable Fabric Buildings provides storage solutions with engineered steel framed buildings covered by heavy duty fabric, with no foundation required. They’re tough. They’re easy to set up. They’re affordable. They stand up to the weather and elements, so your vehicle, industrial equipment, or workforce don’t have to. With G&B Portable Fabric Buildings covering your work area, no more unanticipated delays or work stoppages need to occur due to uncontrollable elements. These custom sized buildings can be connected to meet any requirement. Their modular design allows several buildings to be “connected” to each other, offering unlimited lengths. And best of all, engineered buildings meet national building codes. The companies buildings are designed with the latest modern technologies that are available to maximize the strength and durability of a balanced framework. CWB welding staff ensure that each weld and truss are manufactured to the highest standards. The steel has a 15-year prorated warranty. The research and development team apply standard techniques to bring the buildings to a physical failure point to ensure their performance in the field. Membrane fabric covered steel buildings are the leaders in growth and popularity over the last 10-years. The fabric is 12 oz fabric, which has a 15-year pro-rated warranty. The membrane fabric includes high solar energy values and high light

84 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

transfer. During daylight hours, the buildings will be up to 20F warmer than a conventional building, and up to 80 per cent light transfer allows for a high degree of comfort and enjoyable working conditions.

Simplicity is the rule, with minimal heavy equipment re-

quired for setup. Low cost or no foundation options can meet most customers needs. Factory supplied anchors placed by a hydraulic head, concrete blocks, or ballast systems all can be used without adding a foundation. Buildings have been erected in various soil conditions and a variety of solutions are available.

G&B Portable Fabric Buildings works closely with their

suppliers to provide quick availability and site setup. Setup is measured in days, not weeks and months which means faster access for your work crew to their location. Four steps are involved with setup: The anchors are placed in the ground; a skidsteer picks up the rafters to be guided by the setup crew in a scissor lift.; as the scissor lift guides the rafter in place, the bottom is placed into its anchor; last, trucks are used to pull the fabric cover over the rafters and attached with a high-tension kit.

Beyond the sheer benefits of G&B’s product is the service

you’ll receive when you inquire and purchase your portable fabric building. G&B has built their reputation not only on a great product, but also with second-to-none customer service. Expect the fastest shipping and turn-around in the industry, and around-the-clock customer care and service.

These buildings offer cost effective solutions for your tem-

porary, portable building needs. See videos on setup and testimonials at http://www.bizview. com/directory/directory.cfm?businessID=70. 6

24’ to 86’ WIDE Clear Span Buildings

Phone: (204) 299-6338 www.gandbbuildings.com

ALL MODELS INCLUDE THESE VALUABLE BENEFITS: • Fabric over steel buildings allow up to 70 percent interior light transfer • Round Over Roof Design maximizes life of fabric by as much as 25% • Buildings are all clear span allowing for maximum use of space • Buildings can be easily relocated

Tel: (204) 299-6338 gandbbuildings@gmail.com www.gandbbuildings.com

INNOV-X CANADA

In The Know Using a field-portable XRF for uranium exploration By J. Cameron Barker and Cindy Collins

ivalliq Energy Corporation, a Canadian company exploring for uranium in Nunavut, has tested a field-portable XRF (FPXRF) to analyze drill and other exploration samples. Kivalliq used the FPXRF to make interpretations on their U-bearing zones, to identify rock types and alteration, and to efficiently determine anomalous geochemistry in the field. A Reverse-Circulation (RC) drill is used for rapid preliminary drill testing of bedrock targets. Rather than solid rock core samples, the RC drill produces rock chips for visual inspection and fine rock dust, which is collected in a special containment system. A representative portion of each RC drill interval is collected and saved for analysis. Radioactive intervals are detected by a scintillometer and noted in logs at the drill site. Samples of the anomalously radioactive intervals and a substantial number of samples enclosing the radioactive zones are tested in the bag by the Olympus Delta 50 XRF Workstation. In some cases, FPXRF identified larger envelopes of elevated uranium, silver,

86 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

INNOV-X CANADA

As a result, drill logs and field sample notes can be accurately updated in real-time, rather than waiting weeks or months for laboratory analyses. copper, and molybdenum than may have been noted by scintillometer alone. This allowed interpretation of the strike of the polymetallic uranium-bearing zones by FPXRF. In new exploration areas, the entirety of the RC drill hole was tested from top to bottom for pathfinder elements that may not directly occur with radioactive mineralization but can be used as vectors. FPXRF is also used to test rock samples collected by the prospecting team. Ambiguous rock types and alteration can be directly tested by XRF, allowing for early and more accurate identification and nomenclature. Examples are: Potassic and carbonate alteration could be readily identified by FPXRF; Discerning molybdenite and galena, plus identifying silver, when fine grained and difficult to visually distinguish in drill and rock samples; and â&#x20AC;&#x153;invisibleâ&#x20AC;? elements, like REEs and oxidized metals, can be detected and identified by FPXRF. Highly altered rock samples can be characterized in many cases by the identification of even small amounts of common element suites associated with either the protolith, or a particular alteration style. As a result, drill logs and field sample

notes can be accurately updated in real-time, rather than waiting weeks or months for laboratory analyses.

From a uranium exploration standpoint, determining ura-

nium mineralogy is very important. Uraninite (pitchblende) with minor coffinite and brannerite is the primary mineralization target, since uranium is readily extractable from these phases. Uranium in other radioactive mineral phases, such as zircon, is not considered to constitute a viable exploration target, and many radioactive occurrences can be attributed to non-economically viable elements such as thorium. Therefore, the rapid determination of the source of radioactivity is crucial for the evaluation of radioactive zones in the field. The FPXRF can be used to determine whether or not radioactivity in the field derives from uranium or other, less favourable, elements. By eliminating non-viable targets using the FPXRF, drilling and prospecting can be focused on the most favourable areas, resulting in more rapid prioritization and substantial cost savings. 6

2012-2013 Northern Prospector 87

BUTLER MANUFACTURING™

Heavy Metal Butler Manufacturing™ has forged enviable leadership in metal buildings for mining

etal buildings continue to offer a cost-effective and logical construction method for the mining industry, and Butler Manufacturing, which operates as Butler Buildings (Canada) is the global leader in this advanced type of steel construction. The fully-integrated structural framing, metal roof, and metal wall panel systems erect fast and with predictable quality and energy efficiency which makes them a favoured solution in regions with short construction seasons. Butler Builder® contractors affiliated with Butler Buildings (Canada) offer design/build capabilities with seasoned workforces and proven expertise in meeting schedule expectations under the most adverse conditions. Their projects have included facilities for storage and processing of coarse ore, warming sheds, power plants, maintenance shops, personnel quarters, shipping terminals, offices, and other structures. These facilities shape the landscapes of nickel mines along Ontario’s Sudbury Basin, BHP Billiton’s huge diamond mining complex at Ekati, Northwest Territories, and other complexes for mining base metals, gold and other precious metals, as well as facilities related to energy resource exploration in Canada and abroad. “Mine developers and suppliers continue to rely on our Butler Manufacturing’s global reach as an essential link in the supply chain that supports the development of new mines and operation of existing complexes,” said Craig Mohr, manager of the Global Corporate Accounts Group and Export Operations for Butler Manufacturing™, based in Kansas City, MO. “We foresee continued opportunity in areas as diverse as the Andes Mountains to throughout North America and even in the largely untapped resources of Africa.”

88 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

Predictable Source, Predictable Results Executives in the mining industry can rely on Butler for preplanning, pricing, engineering and construction services for projects ranging from small access control buildings to structures engineered to accommodate the operation of heavy cranes and conveyor systems. In addition to the initial benefits for capital construction programs, Butler Buildings are favoured for their quality of product and their reduced long-term maintenance and operating costs over the life of the facilities. These advantages are of particular importance in an industry with continued growth. “The mining industry on all fronts has become a huge factor in pre-engineered metal building sales,” says Andy Ghadban P.Eng., a professional and designated consulting engineer, who works as manager, Business Development for Butler Buildings Canada. “Consultants expect at least another 10-years of strong growth in this heavy industrial mining sector.”

A Company Synonymous with Metal Buildings Established more than a century ago, Butler Manufacturing began operations in Canada in 1956 and today operates as part of BlueScope Buildings North America. The market consists of all types low-rise building projects in the non-residential sector, including applications for lodging and camp facilities at remote mines operating far from developed communities. In addition to the “standard” buildings, the Butler Mega Structures group at Butler Buildings (Canada) specializes in facilities custom engineered, conventional, and hybrid solutions, for unusual height, long clear spans, and high snow and wind loads,

BUTLER MANUFACTURING™ structurally supported cranes, conveyor systems, mezzanines, and other equipment. Butler’s metal roof and wall panels systems are used to clad the various Butler building structural solutions. “We have designed buildings with cranes rated up to 300 tons and routinely supply them with 75 to 100 psf snow loads,” adds Ghadban. “Snow loads in the mountains of British Columbia and other remote locations in Canada, can require buildings engineered for 300 psf compared to 21 psf for the typical building in southern Ontario.” The Butler reputation for quality buildings evolved from decades of research and product development both in Canada and the United States. At the Butler Research Centre in Missouri, unique in the metal building industry, engineers and technicians run gruelling tests on, plate steel, paint systems, fasteners, supplier sealants, and other materials. Testing new concepts in building systems, including those that contribute to LEED certification, are another focus of activity. The Butler MR-24® standing seam metal roof system – with a record of more than two billion square feet of weathertight applications-originated at the complex located near Kansas City, MO. The construction industry’s most comprehensive database of test-certified thermal values for insulating roof and wall assemblies was compiled there from thousands of tests using a “Large Guarded Hot Box” apparatus. The Butler ThermaLin-

er™ System system coupled with the Butler MR-24® standing seam metal roof, developed by Butler Manufacturing, provides an energy efficient cavity roof system and has earned up to a verified R-40 rating and complements the variety of different Butler wall panel systems. Most recently, the SunLite Strip™ daylighting system met Butler quality standards for use on the MR-24® roof system. The dome-shaped acrylic lenses of the skylights, embossed with a prismatic surface, magnify the diffused daylight reaching the building interior for a significant improvement in the work environment. As Ghadban notes, the future looks bright in many ways for metal building construction in the mining industry. 6

Mining facility expertise. Global capabilities. 1.375"

1.75"

When mining companies need facilities, they come to Butler Manufacturing™ for unmatched responsiveness, extensive fabrication capabilities, and economical solutions—wherever in the world they need to build. We specialize in design, detailing, fabrication, and construction, covering a wide range of strengths: • Unmatched versatility for maximizing workflow • Pre-engineered approach provides faster construction and delivery times and assures competitive pricing • Design accommodates heavy equipment needs • Diverse engineering and manufacturing capabilities ideal for any building application • Butler is a part of BlueScope Steel, adding global sourcing and construction capabilities Call Andy Ghadban, with Butler, at 1-866-352-9248 or visit butlermfg.com to learn more. ©2012 BlueScope Buildings North America, Inc. All rights reserved. Butler Manufacturing™ is a division of BlueScope Buildings North America, Inc.

2012-2013 Northern Prospector 89

CEMENTATION CANADA

Large Scale

Cementation Canada furthers partnerships across Manitoba, Canada, and the world

ementation’s introduction to the Manitoba mining community began in 2000, thanks to a joint venture with Aurora Quarrying at the 777 mine near Flin Flon, Manitoba. Aurora Quarrying was a well-respected mine contracting company that had been carrying out mine development in the region since 1973. The companies’ shared focus on safety and approach to mine development delivery was a good fit, and in 2002 the companies became one with the acquisition of Aurora Quarrying by Cementation. The company has continued to provide mine development services to both Hudbay Minerals’ 777 mine, and Trout Mine in the areas of lateral and ramp development, mechanized, and conventional raising, as well as some underground construction. Cementation’s commitment to the Manitoba mining community has remained strong and further supported with shop facilities in Thompson, responsible for carrying out maintenance on the company’s entire Canadian fleet of mobile equipment. In 2009, Cementation commenced work at San Gold’s Rice Lake Mine with the excavation of ventilation and manway raises using raise climbers. The scope of work was expanded and now includes ramp and drift development in the Hinge and 007 zones while mechanized and conventional raising and some development work continues at the Rice Lake Mine. Reaming of a 305 metre long, 5.5 metre diameter FAR by one of the company’s raise boring crew has just finished, and the 123R drill machine has moved on to another project. Cementation introduced large diameter raise boring into Canada in 2004 at Goldcorp’s Red Lake mine in Northern Ontario. At AuRico Gold’s Young-Davidson gold mine in Northern Ontario, another raise boring crew is currently excavating a 5.5 metre diameter production shaft using borehole hoisting technology. While raise boring production shafts is not a new

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concept, two main factors have allowed for this process to be applied on a larger scale – large diameter raise boring capacity, and vertically true drilling. This alternative provides several advantages over blind sinking when certain ground and mine infrastructure conditions are met. These conditions include, preexisting access at shaft bottom, ground that allows the bored shaft to be self-supporting, and manageable ground water and waste removal. The advantages to raise bored shafts are greater safety with the removal of personnel from the excavation area, and cost and scheduling savings. Travelling still further east, Cementation is currently wrapping up at PotashCorp’s Picadilly project near Sussex, New Brunswick. An Engineer-Procurement-Construct (EPC) project for Cementation, the company has completed the sinking of two shafts to depths just over 900 metres from collar. Both shafts required pre-grouting and grouting during the sinking process. Cementation’s involvement in this project commenced with capital cost estimates, as well as design work carried out by the company’s engineering team. Cementation was also involved with the procurement of materials and the securing of sub-contractors for construction of the headframes and shaft surface facilities. This project has benefited from an excellent safety record and a strong collaborative working relationship with the client, PotashCorp, and the subcontractors. Cementation’s Engineer-Procure-Construct (EPC) approach is based on direct hire from engineering to underground construction. The company does the engineering, the procurement, and the construction. This means one-point accountability, overall project schedule opportunities, better constructability through constructor involvement in design, and integration of temporary and permanent installations to streamline changeovers and startups.

CEMENTATION CANADA

Cementation Canada is part of the global Cementation group with companies in North and South America, South Africa, and Australia. The Cementation group works together sharing global best practices and providing support with specialist personnel and equipment. Several joint venture projects are currently underway. The Venetia Project is a collaboration between Murray & Roberts Cementation and Cementation Canada and is a major shaft sinking project in South Africa for

DeBeers. The PT Freeport Indonesia â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Grasberg Block Cave Service Shaft is a joint venture with Australian sister company RUC Cementation. Cementation Canada also has another joint venture with RUC Cementation in Mongolia to design and build the Oyu Tolgoi #4 Ventilation Shaft. For more information, please visit us online at www.cementation.ca or email busdev@cementation.ca. 6

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BULL POWERTRAIN

Ride The Powertrain Minimize downtime and maximize profit with Bull Powertrain

he booming mining industry has created a great demand on Canadian mining resources, such as skill trades, tires, and machinery components. In fact, some critical powertrain components and parts are quickly becoming very difficult to find. Mining companies know that they can’t afford long waits for critical parts. This is why Bull Powertrain has made it its mission to fulfil the growing need for “in-stock” parts and components in the off-highway powertrain market, especially in the mining industry. “To service our customers best in the powertrain industry.” This simple strategy has been at the heart of Bull Powertrain’s operation since its founding in 1977. Over the last 35-years, Bull Powertrain has held themselves to a higher standard in the powertrain industry to make sure the customer gets the best service, best product, and best support. The staff at

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Bull has built a vast knowledge base in the industry, keeping up with the advances in technologies and changes in the industry. In the early years, Bull was comprised of a very small, but dedicated team of five people who worked by this strategy. Today, the company has grown now comprising of 25 individuals who have kept the same hard work and dedication as their predecessors and the same value is placed on service to the customer. In fact, this proves to be one of the greatest assets of the company, an understanding of the customer’s needs. Specializing in off-highway powertrain components, Bull has created a reputation of excellent service, dedication to their customers and expert knowledge of powertrain assemblies. The company understands downtime needs to minimal, and so it strives to provide the best repair service, quality work and quick turnaround. Bull is based in Sudbury, Ontario which has given it the opportunity to specialize even further by supplying powertrain components and parts to the booming mining industry. At the beginning the company simply provided service to the local mining sector, and now has gathered a network of customers who span the globe. Shipping internationally daily, distance is not a problem for Bull. Bull’s focus in mining has enabled the staff to intimately learn the mining process, equipment machines, people and business. If you want a knowledgeable, understanding supplier for the powertrain components in your mining fleet, look no further than Bull Powertrain. The knowledgeable staff has experience working on all powertrain for mining equipment enabling them to help with parts identification, and help troubleshoot problems with your powertrain system. Bull Powertrain supports many product lines, but the core of its business is based in the Dana/Spicer/Hurth/Clark,

1510 Fairburn St. Sudbury, ON

WWW.BULLIND.COM

Attention!

(705) 560-BULL (2855) Toll Free: 1-800-461-5959

We are now proud to announce our new genuine Driveline Division. With our new driveline manufacturing facility on site we can supply all your genuine driveline needs. Now, with the addition of the Driveline product line, Bull Powertrain is proud to provide a one stop shop for all your genuine OďŹ&#x20AC;-Highway Powertrain needs.

New and Rebuilt Genuine Components

Genuine Parts and Part Kits

Genuine Drivelines Flanges and Hanger Bearings

BULL POWERTRAIN

Axletech/Rockwell, and Kessler products. Bull supplies both new and rebuilt components and parts. Whether it’s the torque converter, transmission, the axle, or associated parts. Bull will rebuild, repair, or supply parts according to your powertrain needs. Bull’s component exchange program helps to minimize downtime and maximize profits by offering same day shipping on over 300 new, rebuilt and tested components stocked within the building. Need a component repaired? Bull offers same day repair return service on most components, goes on a mechanic’s bench at 8:00 a.m., out the shipping door at 5 p.m. Bull has one the largest OEM parts and component inventories in the world and with our high availability and same day shipping we can ensure our customers will be down for the minimum amount of time. The OEM products we carry and

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support, in addition to the previously mentioned lines, include Ausco, Superior Upbox, New Holland, New Process and Timberjack. With 300+ built components in-stock, they are ready to ship at a moments notice. Bull’s facilities have also grown, expanding a few years ago to a 25,000 square foot building with a brand new shop designed with ergonomics and safety in mind to ensure the team can work in the best possible manner. Bull has also installed all the most up to date working tools to ensure maximum performance can be achieved. This was done with the customer in mind, speeding up the processing time in the shop in order to get the components to the customer sooner, minimizing downtime. This year Bull has reached another milestone in its history, and has expanded its services again to better serve its customers. Bull carries components to manufacture or rebuild all driveshafts, from small PTO shafts to the larger industrial mining, forestry and highway applications. Sizes range from 1000 series to 1810 and SPL highway series and from 4C to 10C and GWB 2000 series for off highway applications. All components are genuine original manufacturer quality (Dana/Spicer, Rockford, GWB) and are assembled with new equipment utilizing the latest technologies. The driveline technician has over 20 years of experience and will help solve any driveline problems that you might have. We stock the most popular numbers and can manufacture to your specifications when required. This new aspect of the company is now operational and all driveline applications can be supplied. Bull Powertrain is confident that they will be able to meet any customers driveline needs. 6

McCANN EQUIPMENT

Get Tight McCann Equipment Ltd. is the largest supplier of torque tools and torquerelated equipment in Canada

cCann Equipment Ltd., specializes in the sale, rental, and service of all types of torque related products, particularly hydraulic, pneumatic, electric, and hand torque wrenches. One of McCann Equipment Ltd.’s new torque controlled electric tools is model TONE MCT30AE, which has a one-inch square drive, and delivering 2,200 ft. lbs. of torque. The company is having good success in the mining industry with their Norbar Pneumatic Torque Wrenches of 4500 Nm and 6000 Nm with 1-1/2 or one-inch square drive. One of the company’s most popular hydraulic pumps from TORCUP is Model SV1000, which has a roll cage, removable gauge, and a built in circuitry that allows you to use the tool you are using on the pump and the timing is automatically adjusted to be correct for the tool. The pump knows when to stop. It senses the tightening of the bolt and allows you to finish the application to achieve the proper torque. McCann Equipment-Torque Tools, features an experienced calibration and repair staff. Their trained technicians can calibrate and repair most any tool. McCann Equipment Ltd. provides rapid service with quality that you can trust as they offer five state-of-the-art calibration laboratories and repair facilities that can calibrate up to 25,000 lbs. ft. With over 30-years of experience, McCann’s in-depth knowledge of torque is reflected in their tool’s craftsmanship and ability to provide solutions to both common and uncommon torque applications. They are ISO 17025 and ANSI Z540 accredited. McCann Equipment

Ltd. is dedicated to the distributing, marketing, and servicing of high-quality torque tools.

For more information on McCann Equipment Ltd.‘s products visit www.torquetools.com. 6

Now You’re Torquing! ® SALES • SERVICE • RENTALS • CALIBRATION • CERTIFICATION PNEUMATIC TORQUE WRENCHES HYDRAULIC TORQUE WRENCHES

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• Wrenches from 3/4” to 2-1/2” square drive • TX Low Profile Wrenches from 3/4” to 6-1/8” femal hex drive, torque capacity from 190 lbf.ft to 35,500 lbf.ft

ELECTRIC TORQUE WRENCHES

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www.torquetools.com 2012-2013 Northern Prospector 95

SONIC DRILL CORPORATION

In The Rough Mining industry buzzed about new sonic diamond core head By Nancy Argyle

ong known for its incredible speed advantage (drilling 3-5 times faster), sonic rigs have always been able to obtain samples from a wide variety of mineral deposits including hard-to-extract oil sands, slag piles, mine tailings, and heap leach pads. But, there were still times that a diamond drill was needed to finish the job. The Sonic Drill Corporation (SDC) says it had been listening and working closely with its clients over the years to develop a new patented diamond core head option because, as Kevin Reimer, SDC’s sales and operations manager, notes, “it’s much more cost effective than mobilizing multiple drills to a site.” “Sonic drills achieve amazing results in unconsolidated formations and can generate 100 per cent representative insitu samples completely dry with no drill fluid. No other machine on the planet can achieve this,” says Reimer. “However, the reality is that not all sites have completely predicable unconsolidated formations from surface to drill target.” One such example of this was a recent project where SDC technology was used to explore for lithium at 14,000 feet above sea level in the salares (dry salt lake beds) of Chile. Sonic drilling was selected primarily for its ability to produce water compositions within the salt lakes (salares) and, of course, for its ability to take core samples completely dry. Other contractors had attempted to drill the unconsolidated area with little success using diamond drilling and reverse circulation drilling. “In addition to the consolidated salt (halite), gypsum, sand and mud, there

96 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

were also layers of flowing sandy material. Potentially, there was also basalt (hard rock) layers which are no problem for SDC sonic drills,” says Reimer. But, since the client wanted the ability to take 100 per cent representative core samples to a depth of 600 feet with the sonic drill and then diamond core drill through hard rock formations to 2000 feet, Reimer and the team at SDC knew their latest development was perfect for the job. In the past, sonic drills had been limited to a 600 foot drill depth – not due to lack of power, but due to a limitation on the pull back force generated by the air spring system within the sonic drill head. The air spring mechanism is a critical element because it completely and effectively isolates vibrations, preventing them from being transmitting back up into the drill head. SDC has been manufacturing sonic drill heads with air spring mechanisms for 35-years and hold the patents to this technology. The company is the only OEM on the market to build sonic drills with this unique air spring mechanism which is highly effective and very reliable. To overcome this depth limitation and drill more effectively through hard rock formations, SDC decided to add a diamond coring head onto its machines as an option. Now, the operator can easily sonic drill and sample through unconsolidated formations and, upon reaching hard rock, set the casing then shift over to the diamond coring head to continue diamond drilling and sampling using an overshot system down to 2,000 feet, if required. When first introduced to the market

more than 30-years ago, the sonic drill rig was seen as a powerful environmental investigation drill due to its ability to provide undisturbed core samples but, today, nearly seven out of every 10 SDC rigs are purchased for mining applications. Although the diamond drill has long been the preferred tool for mineral exploration in hard rock, unfortunately, in unconsolidated material, it has two drawbacks. First, it doesn’t drill well in unconsolidated materials and, secondly, it can’t provide accurate core samples from those kinds of formations. These drawbacks are the main reason why SDC’s new head option is being met with such enthusiasm – now mining companies can have the two best drilling methods, sonic and diamond head, on one machine that does it all. Compact and powerful, SDC’s diamond coring head is mounted to the left of its sonic head. Both drill heads are incorporated into a side shift carriage which allows the operator to shift the diamond coring head to the right and above the borehole. The diamond coring head mount also incorporates a hydraulic swing cylinder which swings the diamond coring head out of the way when running the wire line and conventional overshot retrieval system. A separate wire line winch is mounted to the backside of the mast and allows the wire line to run up through a separate set of pulleys in the jib arm. When running diamond core tooling, much less clamping pressure and breaking force is needed so relief valves were added to the operator’s console so

SONIC DRILL CORPORATION

that the operator can reduce pressures and use the same hydraulic breakout table for both diamond coring and sonic drilling. “We can also offer a small clamping table specifically for diamond tool-

ing which quickly bolts down to the top of the existing hydraulic breakout table,” says Reimer. “The diamond coring head can deliver 466 rpm loaded / 16,800 lbs-in of torque to 1434 rpm loaded / 5,200 lbs-in torque. By simply unbolting and disconnecting the zero drip hose connections, the operator can switch from smaller to larger displacement motors to suit the desired spindle rpm and torque,” he adds. The diamond coring head is fitted with a “below spindle water swivel” and the drill rig’s water circuit is configured with valves to switch from the sonic head to the diamond coring head quickly. All hoses are also neatly contained within a hose carrier system that tracks along with the feed of the carriage. The diamond coring head package consists of: a diamond coring head with water swivel and adapter, carriage mount with hydraulic swing cylinder, wire line winch, cable pulleys, operator controls and pressure gauges. A separate foot clamp is optional.

Depending on the SDC sonic drill model, the cost to add a diamond coring head package to a new SDC sonic rig purchase is under $30K U.S. This option can also be added relatively easily to existing sonic drills providing available hydraulic valves are in place. The diamond coring head package is attached to a mounting plate with four bolts. Using the winch cable, the operator can remove it quickly and safely. The same mounting pad can also accept SDC’s SPT 140# auto hammer option, making the machine even more versatile. For literature on the diamond coring head option or for further information on SDC products and services, visit www.sonic-drill.com. 6 Nancy Argyle is a former reporter, government issues analyst and senior disaster communications professional who now concentrates her time on providing marketing support for a number of clients in the drilling, manufacturing, and aviation sectors. She can be reached at info@argyleandassociates.com.

2012-2013 Northern Prospector 97

FORTIS MINING ENGINEERING & MANUFACTURING

Fortis Mining, Engineering & Manufacturing Fortis performs mining-related service work and custom manufacturing for a diverse customer base

ortis is a privately owned company based out of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Fortis evolved from its parent company, Northern Strands Co. Ltd. which began in the mining industry in 1970 as a distributor of mine hoisting ropes. As the customer base grew, market demands changed, and the company started to distribute and then manufacture hoist rope attachments and fittings. In conjunction with these changing market demands, the company recognized the need for supplying services to customers. These services included rope changes, skip changes, accident remediation, de-rope, re-rope, problem solving, specialized equipment, and custom manufacturing. The volume of requests from Northern Strands customers could only be met through the development of a separate company and as a result, Fortis Engineering & Manufacturing Inc. was created.

98 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

In 2006, Fortis took on all the manufacturing, machining, and contract work that had previously been done through Northern Strands. At that time, Fortis began to grow its manufacturing capacity by producing more attachments and fittings. A machine shop was added in 2010 and more products were produced in-house. The fabrication and machine shop grew to accommodate delivery of customer orders. The expansion of the mining industry in Saskatchewan contributed to the growth and evolution of Fortis. The leadership group within Northern Strands and Fortis recognized the increasing demand for professional services within the mining industry. The company met that opportunity by recruiting multi-skilled, highly trained, experienced employees through Fortis in order to supplement the professional services already being delivered by Northern Strands. Fortis

has assembled a group of professional employees who come with the skill set to safely, effectively, and efficiently complete a diverse range of mine-related projects. This team is supported by an experienced fabrication and manufacturing division that can produce quality products used within the mining industry. Fortis has successfully forged relationships with a number of customers including Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan, Agrium, Mosaic, Cameco, Nyrstar, Rio Tinto, and Agnico along with many other mines and mining service companies. The projects that Fortis works on are geographically located in Saskatchewan, as well as at international locations. Fortis delivers specialized consulting and project services to its customers. These services are for such projects as construction, decommissioning, regular maintenance, and emergency situations. In the last two years, Fortis has been collaborating with a large mine contracting firm at a local mine site. Fortis Mining Division has worked on two shaft pre-sinks (production and service), as well as completed the shaft liners from minus 50 to minus seven. Fortis was also awarded the contract to supply and install the dump doors, safety doors and all brattices in both head frames. Furthermore, the manufacturing division continues to complete projects for the local site on a regular basis. Fortis has assisted mines with regular maintenance projects through the development of written procedures for complete de-rope and re-rope projects at potash mines. Fortis has also written

FORTIS MINING ENGINEERING & MANUFACTURING

Today, Fortis continues to handle all mining-related service work and custom manufacturing for a diverse customer base. procedures to replace cheese weight support structures which were deteriorating as a result of corrosion. In this case, Fortis not only wrote the procedures but also supplied the custom cheese weight structures and performed the service work. The written procedures and experienced personnel that Fortis provided to this project resulted in almost zero downtime for the customer. The company has also performed a complete skip change while minimizing the operational impact on the mine. The experienced miners, supervisors, and project managers at Fortis were able to complete the change-over in less than a week. Fortis’ professionalism was recognized by the mine site coordinators, thus proving a large part of the company’s commitment to excellence, safety, and customer satisfaction. Fortis often receives requests for emergency assistance where an unfore-

seen situation has caused the shutdown of a critical aspect of the mine itself. In these situations, customers are looking for a provider who will resolve the issue safely and efficiently. Specifically, Fortis has worked to repair a skip crash caused by excessive rope slip and rope slip caused by the accidental overloading of the skip. In both cases, Fortis’ expertise led to the completion of the repairs safely and in a timely manner. The ownership and management team at Fortis believes in the importance of safety in the workplace. Over the past several years, Fortis has gained a tremendous amount of knowledge from its experienced mining professionals and from the many different mine sites, both locally and internationally, on which Fortis has completed projects. Fortis has been compiling that safety knowledge and is integrating that knowledge into its Safety Management System.

Fortis is actively working to achieve

certification in OHSAS 18001 Health and Safety; ISO 9001 Quality; ISO 14001 Environment by mid-2013. Fortis believes that its determination in creating an injury-free work environment through the ISO policies and procedures is evidence of its commitment to safety.

Today, Fortis continues to handle

all mining-related service work and custom manufacturing for a diverse customer base. The company is positioned to identify customer requirements and is uniquely prepared to address those requirements by leveraging internal talent. Fortis has the experience and knowledge to understand customer requirements and the skills and equipment necessary to address those requirements through the delivery of professional services and quality products. 6

WHEREVER THERE’S MINING, WE’RE THERE.

www.kramer.ca 2012-2013 Northern Prospector 99

ROSS INDUSTRIES

How Does Your Ice Measure Up? Big Ice Flood Pumps help meet client’s capacity requirements

anadian winters may not be what they used to be with global climatic changes bringing in warmer and shorter winter seasons. Explorers working on, or over ice on lakes and rivers have new challenges ahead of them to keep projects moving effectively and safely in the Canadian Shield. When your ice does not measure up, you can rely on Big Ice Flood Pumps to thicken the ice to meet your design capacity requirements. This purpose-build axial flow pump has proven itself in many locations in the world’s northern hemispheres. In arctic temperatures water will freeze in a conventional pumps impeller case in minutes resulting in permanent damage, whereas Big Ice Pumps are designed to self-prime and drain maximizing flooding operational uptime.

Case Studies An international scientific consortium has a big logistical problem. Scientists realize when their 80 ton core drill arrives on location north of the Arctic

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circle in eastern Siberia they will not have enough natural lake ice to safely commence drilling operations. Big Ice Flood Pumps were chosen and deployed to build the pad ice up to the design specifications keeping the project on track to assure completion of this costly project in one winter season. A Northwest Territories mining company required a big air lift of mining supplies in a very remote region. The mining company’s only economic option was to choose a nearby lake to facilitate a 5,000 foot ice runway to receive the exploration supplies. Big Ice Flood Pumps were requisitioned and flooding operations commenced to build up the ice to the necessary capacity needs to support a Hercules C-130 transport aircraft with a landing weight of 13,000 pounds touching down at over 115 MPH. Big Ice Flood Pumps will measure up to your task of building ice to maximize the safety of men and equipment while completing your next winter’s exploration project. 6

WITH YOU GET: • Reduced electricity consumption of at least 20% • Roller construction reducing noise by 12 decibels • Sealed for life system better than anything else on the market due to use of synthetic non water soluble grease with operating temperature range of minus 67°F to 400°F • Superior roller quality resulting in reduced downtime with life expectancy as much as 3 times as the rollers you're presently using • Bearings which are isolated from high frequency noise, excessive impact and vibration • Minimum TIR from every roller • Customized roller construction to meet your needs; not an off the shelf product and will fit any idler frame. • Meets and exceeds all CEMA specifications

WE'RE NOT ONLY ABOUT PRICE, WE ARE ABOUT A RETURN ON YOUR INVESTMENT!

CAN YOU AFFORD... NOT BUYING ENDURIDE? NOT SAVING 20% ON ELECTRICITY? NOT HAVING A ROLLER WITH THE BEST SEALS ON THE MARKET? NOT HAVING THE MOST SILENT ROLLER ON THE MARKET? NOT HAVING THE BEST RETURN ON YOUR INVESTMENT? NOT HAVING LESS DOWNTIME ON YOUR CONVEYOR?

YOU CAN AFFORD THE

PRODUCTS

IF YOU STOP LOOKING AT PRICE AND LOOK FOR A RETURN ON INVESTMENT, WE CAN THEN HELP YOU SOLVE YOUR PROBLEMS AND GET YOU A BETTER RETURN ON YOUR DOLLARS.

www.enduridecanadausa.com jet11@enduridecanadausa.com

IT’S ALL ABOUT COST PER TON!

ARGO

Go Hard The ARGO 8x8 TITAN sets a new benchmark for handling extreme terrain

lassical mechanics, founded by the brilliant Sir Isaac Newton, captures the essence of “power” with a simple definition: the rate at which work is done over time. The engineers at ARGO distilled simplicity and power into this innovative off-road vehicle when they developed the all-new ARGO 8x8 TITAN. The ARGO TITAN gives mining, utility, oil and gas companies, as well as serious outdoorsmen, the power to excel and produce in extreme terrain with very low maintenance. The all-new ARGO TITAN is an amphibious utility vehicle with seating for up to four people on land and in water, and a flexible cargo platform option that can be customized to work like no other ARGO before, providing excellent value. Fancy design features may make for catchy brochures, but the ARGO TITAN features performance and extreme versatility where it is needed the most for commercial applications. The proven, direct drive triple differential ADMIRAL transmission steers smoothly through challenging terrain, and allows for turns within the vehicle’s own length with minimal effort. With a 1,300 lbs. cargo rating and a 1,150 lbs. drawbar pull, it is built to handle tougher chores than the standard ARGO lineup, but still remains very cost effective compared to the heavy duty ARGO 8x8 Centaur. An optional rugged Roll-Over Protective Structure (ROPS) frame for two or four passengers can be installed when required. The ARGO TITAN’s custom tire tread is shaped for propulsion over small bodies of water, as well as traction and flotation on deep mud, over obstacles, and through flooded areas. As an industry first, the steering column can also be moved quickly from left to right so the operator can position himself comfortably on the bench seat as required for various scenarios.

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Work is the accomplishment of tasks. The versatile and flexible cargo compartment is already proving itself as missioncapable, whether the task is to carry equipment and supplies across northern Ontario muskeg for mineral exploration, delve deeply into Malaysian plantations to optimize palm fruit harvesting, or maintain power lines and cellular towers in the Colorado Rockies. The TITAN’s eight-wheeled layout not only provides incredible traction and stability, but the field-tested accessories, including heavy duty 15 inch or 18 inch mud or snow track solutions, make the ARGO TITAN a workhorse 12 months of the year, thus maximizing utilization and ROI. At full payload a ground pressure of low as one psi is achieved. The optional flatbed allows for the mounting of standard and customized cargo boxes, as well as third party small drills, spraying equipment for insect and weed control, or fire fighting systems meeting the expectations of the most serious users when it comes to versatility. Other accessories include a 4,000 lb. power winch, brush guard, dual bilge pump, rear bench seat, and a helicopter lift kit.

The Best and Toughest ARGO Ever Built As proven by Mr. Newton, work must be done over time to demonstrate true power. In the utility vehicle world, this requires reliability that translates into a low cost of ownership. The mobility advantage for an energy company crew or natural resource exploration team vaporizes when a vehicle gets stuck in the bush or in the repair shop. ARGO’s 45-years of unmatched experience in the toughest places on earth back each and every ARGO TITAN. Every step in the design is a step forward in dependability and durability. All eight-drive

ARGO

axles feature tapered roller bearings contained in an oil bath axle housing. Heavy duty, auto-lubed, single-roller drive chains ride on self-tensioned nylon slider blocks, resulting in longer service life and very low maintenance. The ARGO TITAN’s rock-solid 31hp fuel injected Kohler power plant has proven itself around the globe in many other ARGO platforms. A bestin-class highly functional instrumentation package keeps the driver informed of critical vehicle conditions such as fuel level, charging system output, and engine temperature. From the smoothest skid-steering system on the market to the impactresistant waterproof hull, this is a serious utility platform that will overcome the forces of nature even after years of rugged

use. In addition, ARGO vehicles are backed by application engineering, technical support, and fast parts turnaround.

Just as men have marvelled at Newton’s intellectual bril-

liance throughout the years, ARGO has built a time-tested track record of achieving what no other fleet solution on earth can do when the going gets tough. ARGO has once more raised the bar in the utility vehicle class with the ARGO TITAN, giving the unsung geniuses in the working world more power to produce in extreme terrain than ever before. Make the next smart move for your business by visiting your local ARGO TITAN dealer or researching online at www.argoutv.com/TITAN. 6

•Amphibious* •All Season •All Terrain •All Wheel Drive •Up To 6 Passengers*

1-877-274-6288 Vehicles shown with optional accessories. * ARGO models only. Does not apply to CENTAUR 8x8.

ARGOutv.com/exploration 2012-2013 Northern Prospector 103

MINE SITE TECHNOLOGIES

Make an Impact Mine Site Technologies ImPact system enables and integrates functionalities underground that were previously unseen in the mining industry

s mining methods have progressed through the years, new technologies used in mining have advanced as well with a focus on increasing productivity, and improving overall safety. Mine Site Technologies has kept pace with this advancing technology and the wants and needs of the mining industry by developing their ImPact underground wireless network solution. The ImPact system enables and integrates functionalities underground that were previously unseen in the mining industry. One of the most common applications is real-time tracking and monitoring of personnel and machinery. Powered by MST’s ImPact wireless network system underground, and the ICA (ImPact Communications Appliance) on the surface, miners and their equipment can be tracked and monitored at all times. The importance of this has never been more evident than during emergency situations when knowing the location of miners prior to a rescue team entering the mine can mean the difference between life and death.

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The ICA can be configured to issue an alert if a miner has been stationary for a predetermined amount of time or enters a restricted area. The miners can be called or sent a text message via MST’s rugged VoIP MinePhone to make sure everything is okay or determine if assistance is needed. If no response is received the miner can be tracked to his last location. In terms of productivity, miners can track their equipment, saving time in locating the equipment during shift changes and maintenance intervals. In addition to real-time tracking, proximity awareness systems can be used with the ImPact system, alerting drivers underground that they are approaching another vehicle or miner so that they have time to react and avoid a collision. Underground communications have also progressed a long way from the early use of two way radios. Mine Site Technologies has created the industry’s first fit for purpose Voice over IP (VoIP) phone for use with the ImPact underground wireless system. The MP70 VoIP phone offers more features and a clearer conversation

than a standard two way radios, and can also be tracked through the ICA and ImPact wireless system. The MP70 also features the ability to provide peer-topeer communications underground even if the core network system goes does, providing even greater redundancy than competitive systems. Most importantly, the ImPact system enables underground personnel to use any Wi-Fi capable electronic device. For example, a miner can receive an email on his laptop from a vendor while underground, look up the part number on his PC or rugged tablet, and then call the vendor on his VoIP phone (MP70) to give him the part number or ask him for more information. The ImPact system can provide pervasive coverage to the entire mine, or hotspots coverage in strategic locations where the miners need it most (underground workshop, entryways, man ways, belt ends… etc.), tailoring the solution to each mine. Mine Site Technologies is based on a culture of safety that begins from the first day a new employee starts with the company to day they retire. Every major

MINE SITE TECHNOLOGIES meeting starts with a safety discussion. Every board and region report highlights a safety topic and company reports feature a section on safety results. Every employee newsletter includes articles, which highlight a safety focused lifestyle for work and at home. Safety is a focus that starts with the senior management and is vital throughout the organization – there is a genuine concern at all levels of the organization that every employee is working and living safely every day. Lloyd Zenari, CEO, announced, “Our primary goal is ‘Home Safe’ – ensuring that all of our people get home safely to their families, every day. We have and will always strive for zero-harm across our team.” Mine Site Technology has grown from two people in Sydney, Australia, to 20 offices around the world. MST’s offices and support centers are strategically located in the world’s primary mining regions and continue to expand. Their global headquarters is located in Sydney, NSW, Australia, their Americas head-

quarters is located in Denver, Colorado, U.S., and their China headquarters is located in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China. “We pride ourselves on providing the most technologically advanced mine

communications systems available in the world today, and we design, manufacture, and support those products to the highest standards of workmanship and quality.” 6

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UNITED PERSONNEL CARRIERS

Customer Commitment Drives Sales Sixty-two units in the field, more on the way

nited Personnel Carriers (UPC) general manager Jay Michaud knew that with the right product, backed by impeccable customer service, a full line of stocked parts and a committed staff, a viable business could be built to make a difference in the mining industry. The last year has been a testament to how right Michaud and staff really were. With his business partner St. Germain, they proved to their clients that they can count on UPC to fully support their product after delivery. UPC builds modified Cub Cadet 4X4 vehicles into personnel carriers for use in the harshest environments underground. UPC’s Shifter 4X4D vehicle has been a huge hit in mines across Northern Ontario, and has Michaud balancing everincreasing demand and company growth with his commitment to provide responsible and reliable customer service to existing clients. “Last year, we had 32 units in the field. One year later, we have 62 units in operation,” says Michaud. “It has been nuts. We’ve nearly doubled our production and people keep asking for more. We’re trying to build two vehicles for stock, but we can’t. Mines want to buy them right away. It has been word-of-

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mouth about what we build and how we do business that has allowed us to have this success. The key is and always will be customer satisfaction.” UPC was incorporated in 2008 and sold its first unit to Goldcorp’s Porcupine division in Timmins in March 2009. UPC takes a stock 4X4 utility vehicle and transforms it into a mining machine that exceeds standards. They complete the makeover by adding the industry’s first spring applied hydraulic release (SAHR) brakes for this type of vehicle, a heavy-duty NEMA certified control and instrument panel, heavy-duty LED lights, a two-piece aluminum cover that protects the heavy-duty, long-life CVT system (extending drive belt life), fully retractable jump seats, fire-proof wiring and sealed controls, among other modifications. It features a Yanmar Tier 4, 854cc , three-cylinder diesel engine that pumps out 34.6 pounds-feet of torque and 22 horsepower (it’s the only unit this size with a certified Tier 4 engine), three-inch ladder steel frame, a 14.4 cubic foot cargo bed, raised radiator, rack and pinion steering and cargo capacity of 800 pounds. It all adds up to an impressive package combining value, reliability, safety and efficiency. “The engine is the lowest emission

engine in its class and with the SAHR brakes, it makes it one of the safest small vehicles underground,” says Michaud. “We have the proven lowest operation cost-per-hour in the market.” What makes the Shifter unique and up for any challenge is its ability to be nearly infinitely modified for use in almost any situation underground within the maximum configuration of the vehicle. (UPC is currently working on adding a four-person face forward unit and also refining the first small battery operated unit that will revolutionize the mining industry.) The vehicle is also designed to be repaired quickly in case of breakdown. UPC stocks $150,000 in parts. Any repairs can be dealt with overnight or the next day. “We can do virtually anything for a client to modify the vehicle,” he says. “We can build different configurations to suit any need. We have the lowest downtime for this type of machine in the market. It’s important to customers to be able to get parts for repairs overnight. This keeps them going and happy.” The company’s dedication to its client base has fuelled its growth. In 2011, UPC had four employees. There are now nine people working for the company to keep up the high standards and meet customer demand. No matter how busy and how daunting the challenge, Michaud will always ensure that customers get the best from him and every employee. “There is more demand for these vehicles, but also more demand for companies that supply customers with service, parts and the right expertise every time. UPC takes pride in building what its customers want and servicing it. We felt strongly about this product and we made sacrifices to bring it to market. Everything has to be right. Even putting the stickers on right. Every detail. I know

UNITED PERSONNEL CARRIERS

if I am not happy, my customers will not be happy. It’s a big commitment, but well worth it.” UPC is taking the slow and steady approach to future growth and reaching company goals. Michaud doesn’t want to get too big, too fast. He wants the growth of UPC to be done right and will not deviate for any reason. “We’re opening the door inch-

by-inch to a bigger market nationally and internationally,” he says. “It’s important to us to have a proven unit before we open too many doors, and we have to take care of existing clients before getting more. We have to build the company right, so we can always meet the high expectations of our customers.” 6

http://www.upc-canada.ca ain had e St.Germ uld be v a D d n le co aud a Jay Mich creational vehic f a personnel/ o a re le h c ro n e u h th ing a nd serve derground min a d e ifi d n u mo e th in rrier utility ca ead their story @ ions.com/ t .R ry st u ingsolu d in burymin arrier-making d u .s w c lww e n n o rs new-pe ads.html inro

u since 2008 Serving yo

Phone (705) 897-4872 | Fax (705) 897-1872 | jayupc@gmail.com | daveupc@gmail.com | www.upc-canada.ca 2012-2013 Northern Prospector 107

SASKATCHEWAN RESEARCH COUNCIL

Working For You Saskatchewan Research Council (SRC) offers a diverse range of world-class mining services

By Jaime Procknow

askatchewan Research Council (SRC) offers Smart Science Solutions™ in uranium, potash, diamonds, oil shale, rare earth elements, and other commodities. SRC’s world-renowned experience and research background allows us to continually improve the reliability of processes and analyses, helping ensure our clients’ success.

Geoanalytical Services SRC has been providing high quality uranium analysis for almost 40-years. In the past year, SRC’s Geoanalytical Laboratories have expanded to meet the increase in exploration of uranium and gold. The labs have been instrumental in providing high-quality analytical resources that have helped in the development of uranium exploration and mining in Saskatchewan and around the world. Licensed by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC), the laboratory safely receives, processes, and archives radioactive samples. SRC’s Geoanalytical Laboratories recently installed a highresolution, inductively-coupled plasma mass spectrometer (HRICPMS) in order to provide high-quality isotopic data to clients. By studying three isotope systems (lead, lithium, and boron), possible research areas for vectoring toward uranium deposits will be identified. The laboratory also participates in a proficiency testing program organized by CANMET for base metals and precious metal assaying. As well, the lab has an ISO 17025 accreditation for mineral analysis testing. For nearly four decades, SRC’s Geoanalytical Laboratories have been providing expert services to the exploration and mining industries by offering a diverse range of analytical mineral exploration packages. From kimberlite processing to diamond recovery to uranium, potash, gold and rare earth analyses, SRC’s Geoanalytical Laboratories deliver customer satisfaction with relevant, timely, and cost-effective services.

Advanced Microanalysis]Centre™ SRC’s Advanced Microanalysis Centre™ opened in early 2010, to offer clients in the mining and minerals industries leading-edge services that were previously unavailable in Saskatchewan. The centre, along with SRC’s Geoanalytical Laboratories, 108 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

supplies all of the necessary analytical tools for mineral exploration for everything from sample preparation right through to trace element analysis, all performed in one convenient location. With an expansion last year to keep up with ever-increasing industry demands, the centre has become a one-stop shop for clients both in the province and across the country. “This expansion allows the Advanced Microanalysis Centre to provide an even more robust array of services to a broader client base here in Saskatchewan and well beyond,” says SRC Vice President of Mining and Minerals, Craig Murray. “These services add value and complement the services already offered by our Geoanalytical Laboratories.”

Mineral Processing and Metallurgical Testing Mineral Processing is a technology that is a critical service need in North America. SRC offers this service as one of many in a long list of superior services we provide to the mining and minerals industry. The Mineral Processing and Metallurgical Testing services build upon existing capabilities and strengths offered in SRC’s Geoanalytical Laboratories and the Advanced Microanalysis Centre™. Lab, bench, and pilot plant-scale testing are some of the key mineral processing services that SRC offers, along with developing process models for potash, uranium, rare earth minerals, gold and base metals, among others. In a province where potash and uranium account for approximately 30 per cent of the world’s supply and rare earth elements are becoming increasingly valued for their properties used in batteries and technological instruments, SRC is pleased to mineral processing and metallurgical testing. By delivering high-quality processing and metallurgical testing for the mineral-producing industry, SRC ensures leading-edge support capabilities are available for our clients’ across Canada and around the world. For a complete list of service offerings, go to www.src.sk.ca or email info@src.sk.ca. 6

Geoanalytical Laboratories

Analytical solutions in: Uranium w U3O8 (wt%) analysis

w Multi-element ICP-OES and ICP-MS packages w Trace element ICP-MS w High resolution ICP-MS w Gold and base metal analysis w Rare earth element analysis w Licensed radioactive facility Tel: 306-933-8118; Fax: 306-933-5656; Email: geolab@src.sk.ca

Potash w ICP-OES and ICP-MS analyses w Dedicated facility

Diamonds w Macro diamond recovery w Micro diamond recovery w Kimberlite indicator mineral processing and recovery w High security facility Tel: 306-933-7177; Fax: 306-933-7197; Email: geolab@src.sk.ca

Advanced Microanalysis Centreâ&#x201E;˘ w Custom analytical packages (XRF) w Quantitative Mineralogy (EPMA) w Trace Element Analysis (LA-ICP-MS) w Isotope Analysis (HR-ICP-MS) w High Magnification Imaging (SEM) w Qualitative and quantitative analysis (XRD) w Petrography-slide preparation and interpretation Tel: 306-933-7893; Fax: 306-933-7446; Email: microlab@src.sk.ca

Mineral Processing and Metallurgical Testing w Lab, bench and pilot-scale testing w Process engineering and development for uranium, potash,

rare earth elements, gold and base metals w Process optimization w Environmentally sustainable extraction processes w Effluent treatment and tailings management Tel: 306-964-2008; Fax: 306-933-7446; Email: mineralprocess@src.sk.ca

Contact the Saskatchewan Research Council (SRC) for a complete list of services or visit our website and click on labs.

www.src.sk.ca ISO/IEC 17025: 2005 Accredited Facility

MARCH CONSULTING ASSOCIATES INC.

Specialized in Saskatchewan March Consulting Associates Inc. offers the flexibility of a Saskatchewan-based company along with the sophistication, and capability of an engineering firm with international experience

askatchewan is at the forefront of the world’s mining industry and March Consulting Associates Inc. is proud to be a part of it. Based in the heart of this prospering province, in the city of Saskatoon, March provides customized engineering, procurement, project, and construction management services to a variety of resource-based industrial and commercial enterprises. As the largest Saskatchewan-owned engineering consultancy, March knows first-hand the endless potential of this province. With March, clients receive the agility, flexibility, and adaptability of a Saskatchewan-based company along with the experience, sophistication, and capability of an engineering firm with international experience. Combine that with expertise in Saskatchewan potash, uranium, base, and precious metals and you have an organization that is ready to deliver quality work in any phase of a project. March is made up of a diverse group of professionals, the core of which have been active in the Canadian mining industry for decades. Brought together under March, they have executed multi-discipline projects of varying magnitude for all of the major mining companies in Saskatchewan. March derives a standard of excellence from its people, progress, and experience. As leaders in innovation and quality, March’s constant desire to continually innovate and improve current engineering practices creates an atmosphere of challenge and accomplishment for its team. March’s state-of-the-art technology, specifically designed for engineering and construction management, sets the pace for the ever expanding mining industry in Saskatchewan.

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Experienced March’s experience runs the spectrum from capital cost estimates and feasibility studies, to turnkey EPCM/EPC mine expansions and asset integrity work. The company prides itself on remaining at the forefront of safety and environmental risk assessment practices and trends. This commitment to safety and environmental management has given rise to a corporate culture of success that emphasizes excellence in safety performance and environmental stewardship. MULTI-DISCIPLINED ENGINEERING At the heart of March is its engineering team. For over a decade, March has been dedicated to quality engineering and design. Diverse and integrated, each of its engineering departments is able to act as the lead discipline on a project or in a support role. EPCM March is capable of executing large-scale multi-discipline projects, from project concept to completion. Projects are executed by project and construction management professionals and a team dedicated to the delivery of client-tailored, industry leading project services. When using March’s EPCM services, a client can be confident that their project will be delivered ontime and on-budget by expert personnel. EPC An alliance with Tron Power Inc., a Saskatchewan First Nations construction services provider, gives clients the unique experience of one-stop shopping for their design/build needs.

MARCH CONSULTING ASSOCIATES INC. SPECIALIZED EXPERTISE

In addition to its core services, March has developed

specialized expertise in a number of key areas, including mining studies, safety/risk, energy management, asset integrity, and information technology.

Diverse

Employee-owned, March employs over 100 person-

nel with a wide range of global and local expertise. Dedicated to diversity and equal opportunity, approximately 23 per cent of technical staff are internationally educated and approximately 26 per cent are women. March employs individuals from Asia, Africa, Europe, North and South America.

Committed to helping foreign trained employees suc-

ceed in their new country, March has developed programs tailored to assist each individual, whether with language training, adapting to Canadian business culture or professional registration.

From conceptualization to completion, March’s team

of dedicated professionals brings world-class experience to every facet of a project. “Combining global expertise with focused knowledge of client requirements.” 6

CMY

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SPIRIT STAFFING & CONSULTING BRANDON INC.

In Good Spirits Spirit Staffing & Consulting Brandon Inc. helps recruit and retain your labour force

ave you heard there is a shortage of skilled workers? Are you familiar with how this shortage will increase by 2020? I am sure you have thought about how this will impact your bottom line if you don’t take action now. Imagine how nice it would be if you were positioned correctly. This is something that is on the minds of many people. You may be comfortable at the moment, but will you be in eight years? Many companies are experiencing an ageing workforce. How effectively are you using the people you currently have to pass on information to the up-and-coming generation of workers? The most valuable asset a company has is their people. By providing them with the tools to accurately and effectively pass on their knowledge and present their expertise to others, you will be one step ahead. When some people hear the word “recruiter” different things come to mind. I have often heard, “How am I supposed to find the right person (or the right job) when I am so busy trying to do my job?” Ask yourself, what is your time worth? What could you be doing if this was taken care of? It is all about building the right team and getting to that next level. Creating success does not happen overnight; it takes time. The time to start is now. Retention is a key element in managing training and other costs. What will happen to salary increases or bonuses if your company’s overhead goes up, especially if production is down? This is where Spirit Staffing & Consulting Brandon Inc. can become “Your Right Fit Expert.” It is fair to say that good companies want to keep their employees happy. After all, it is in their best interest. Corporate values and personal values need to be met. The reason I started Spirit Staffing & Consulting Brandon Inc. was to fill a need for strong individuals to gain happiness at work and to provide the resources for companies to succeed in maximizing their potential. A positive work environment can make the difference between profit and loss. How did get to this point in my life? Several years ago, I enjoyed my job and the people around me. I thrived and envisioned myself spending many years on their payroll. That was until a new person was introduced to our team and I noticed that there was a shift, and I began hating my job. I came to realize that my values were not in line with the values of that one persoN. I was at a crossroads. I had never quit a job before. I still enjoyed all the other people around me. I still felt attached to the company. Why did I let it affect me...? It was not worth go-

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By Charlotte Larocque

ing home every night stressed-out, angry, and feeling so negative. The company raised my salary, so I stayed, but I still felt the same and the atmosphere did not get better. They gave me another raise, so I tried to hang on longer. Finally, I realized that happiness is worth more than a salary to me. My family deserved for me to be happy when I was at home. I recalled a phrase that a wise person once told me: “Focus your energy where you excel and on what makes you happy. The rest can be delegated to others. Asking for help is a sign of strength. If you do this, you will surpass your goals.” After exploring the answers to two simple questions (what would happen if I did, versus what would happen if I didn’t?), I eliminated my fears and decided to move forward. I believe there is a reason for everything. I found myself in a position where I could go back to school and take my human resources and management training. I wanted to prove to myself that I could overcome any obstacle, that I could make a difference. So I did. The question was then what? I wanted to lend a hand to others, so I helped children learn about different careers. It was an amazing job; yet I still felt a void. Something was still missing and I needed a change; I wanted to live up to MY potential. If I had those thoughts and feelings, others must too. At Spirit Staffing & Consulting Brandon Inc., I realize we all have an abundance of knowledge and skills to offer, we all have goals, dreams, and visions. Companies have specific goals, needs, and priorities that have been created through their vision as well. Does it not make sense to offer your knowledge and skills to the right employer in return for what is important to you? What if people and companies have similar goals and visions? So what do I do? I help companies focus on their core competencies through various HR functions, including training and recruitment of quality, qualified individuals with the skill set and values to become a part of my clients’ teams. I find the true values, goals, and visions and align them. I offer them tools that will retain these key employees long-term. I facilitate workshops within companies that draw out the leadership and mentorship skills and knowledge of their existing employees. I create win-win circumstances for both the employers and the employees. More than a recruiter? Yes. Now you know why I am more than a leader in workforce diversity solutions. I am “Your Right Fit Expert.” 6

AECOM

Build You Up AECOM is able to provide infrastructure services most efficiently and effectively

s the world becomes ever more urbanized the demand for minerals climbs. In Manitoba, the increased demand for minerals may also present the opportunity to drive economic success within the province. The mineral industry is the second largest primary resource sector of Manitoba’s economy with the 2010 value of production of the province’s mineral industry totalling more than $2.5 billion. Deposits of base and precious metals, specialty metals, and industrial minerals often require infrastructure investment across the transportation, energy, and water markets in order to develop the means to reap the benefits of these resources. At GLOBE 2012 this past March, the Canadian Mining Association’s Pierre Gratton says he expects $140 billion in new mining investment to hit the ground within the next five to 10-years. Developing infrastructure to extract and deliver these resources to market is an essential part of this investment. The demand for infrastructure is far-reaching. It includes rail, roads, or ports to transport minerals; energy generation to run equipment and water plants to help process the extracted minerals. “Enabling infrastructure is vital to successful mining operations. You have to have power, water and then transportation to produce and move minerals to market,” says Lou Bruno, vice president of Minerals and Metals, North America at AECOM. “These needs present a big opportunity to infrastructure firms and their engineers.” Firms with the capability to deliver multidisciplinary work, such as AECOM, are able to provide infrastructure services most efficiently and effectively. AECOM experts within the minerals and metals business line work collaboratively with the firm’s professionals across the transportation, energ,y and water businesses, providing services to deliver mineral products from mine to market. This teamwork, coupled with the ability to work collaboratively with clients enables AECOM to devise innovative solutions that meet clients’ specific needs across the industry. AECOM helped AREVA Resources Canada Inc., one of the world’s leading uranium exploration, mining, and milling companies, plan development for the Midwest Project in Saskatchewan. This large open pit mine will deliver uranium ore to AREVA’s existing McClean Lake processing operation. A team of AECOM professionals has provided site development services in areas ranging from roads and an ore truck maintenance

shop, to a mine water treatment plant, power generation, and distribution plant and the mine offices and change house. AECOM’s knowledge in the minerals and metals arena encompasses all aspects of a project’s life cycle, including program management, EPCM delivery and asset management, preliminary environmental planning and permitting, mine and process facilities, utilities, buildings, decommissioning with capabilities that encompass feasibility studies, environmental and social assessment and permitting, enabling infrastructure and mine closure planning. Condition assessments are also part of the skills package within the AECOM team. In 2010, as part of Auriga Gold Corporation’s Maverick Gold Project, AECOM delivered a condition assessment of the 1,000 tonne-per day mill, concentrator, and other infrastructure equipment associated with the past producing underground Puffy Lake mine operation in Manitoba. The project was designed to assess the investment needed to bring the mill, mothballed since the late 1980s, back into service. AECOM catalogued the existing reports and site drawings, undertook a site visit and prepared a condition assessment report, as well as a Class 5 opinion of cost to refurbish the mill. “Our capabilities enabled us to provide solid advice to our clients,” says Bruno. “Our specialized knowledge of the minerals and metals industry combined with our multidisciplinary experience enables us to provide services across all the markets to deliver the resources that are essential to our clients’ success.” More information on AECOM and its services can be found at www.aecom.com. 6

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KEEWATIN AIR

Arctic Pioneer Since its founding Keewatin Air has become an essential part of northern travel

eewatin Air (KAL) has been providing air services to the people of Nunavut (originally NWT) since 1971, when Rankin Inlet was quite a different place from what it is today. The population and the town were less than half the size they are currently. The utilidor had not been built. The Hudson Bay Store (now known as the Northern Store) was the only store in town. There were no restaurants, no short order food places, no Co-op, and the hotel was just being built. Aviation in the north was a fledgling industry. The runway in Rankin was a much smaller, gravel strip. One small, two room building on the site where Keewatin’s hangar now stands, doubled as a waiting area and freight shed. No airplanes were based in the region. Transair flew in three times a week and Calm Air was beginning to run scheds into the area. The only means of long distance communication was HF radio. There were no telephones, no sat phones, no TV, and personal computers weren’t even heard of. Keewatin Air was formed on paper that year. The process of building the company began in 1972. Why did Bob May choose Rankin Inlet as a base to build an aviation business? Very simply – there was a need. A small Cessna 185 was the company’s first plane. A Beech 18 on floats was brought in one summer. An Otter on floats completed the fish haul another summer. In 1974 four Beaver aircraft, purchased from a British company that had operated them in the desert for the Sultan of Oman, became the first year round aircraft to be based in the Kivalliq (then Keewatin). It was a cold operation with no hangar and no electricity at the airport; blow pots and engine tents provided the heat to get the airplane engine warm enough to run. In -30 to -60o temperatures (always with a wind) the battery had to be hauled to and from the plane on a toboggan to prevent it from freezing. There was no taxi service and very few vehicles because … there were no roads. Several unique problems faced the little company. There was no accommodation available. Before staff could be hired accommodation had to be built or bought. Before a perma-

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nent year round operation could be truly viable a hangar had to be built. Most summers found the company involved in a new construction project. First an addition to its first mobile home (which eventually burned down), then a duplex, a 10unit apartment and eventually a three bedroom house for the staff was added. The first hangar and office complex, completed in the 1980s, suffered severe fire damage and was rebuilt to its present size. For the first time in the history of the Keewatin district, a safe, professional, dependable aviation service was available year round in the region. A Beaver on Tundra tires made the land accessible. Eskers made excellent runways. On floats any lake of reasonable size and depth was accessible. Keewatin Air hauled fish and freight, moved speculators out onto the land. The caribou and osprey were counted, fishermen moved out to camps, canoeists picked up from their rendezvous, stranded skidooers found. As telephones made their debut Bell Canada was transported into the settlements to install and fix the system. Northern Canada Power Corp (NCPC) was flown into settlements when the power “went down.” The Beavers were eventually replaced with twin engine, turbine aircraft. The Tradewind and Westwind II brought with them cold weather predictability and speed. A new era was emerging for aviation in the Kivalliq. Transporting patients to hospital in Churchill and even Winnipeg for emergency treatment was now possible. In 1985, Keewatin Air’s owner, Bob May approached the regional government suggesting that he could add nurses on his aircraft to escort the patients on “medevac,” but they turned his offer down. Undaunted, nurses were added to the Keewatin Air team and within two months, they were considered the best thing since sliced bread. The seeds of the air ambulance service Keewatin Air provides today were sown. The addition of pressurized aircraft in the 1990s and the development of a true medical program completed the service. The company entered a new era in medevac operations

KEEWATIN AIR

for the Kivalliq in 1997 with the addition of a Lear 35 based in Winnipeg. Flying at 450 MPH this aircraft brought specialist teams from Winnipeg to Rankin in less than two hours. Doctors, nurses, and respiratory therapists were contracted to be available when needed to fly into Rankin or Churchill or around the globe to transport the seriously ill patient to the appropriate hospital. With the expansion of the Lear operation to Toronto in 2002 to enhance access to the international market, Keewatin Air (operating as Critical Care International) became a world contender in the air ambulance business. It built on that experience to become one of the best air medical providers in the world. In 2003, Keewatin Air was awarded the medevac contract for the Kivalliq Region of Nunavut and subsequently made the decision to re-focus or root our business in the Arctic, where our â&#x20AC;&#x153;heartsâ&#x20AC;? were. Critical Care International was sold. The arctic air ambulance business was developed further and in 2010, the company was awarded the Baffin Region Medevac Contract, essentially doubling the size of our medevac fleet and the volume of medevacs done. A state of the art hangar facility was built in Iqaluit, complete with 24-hour maintenance and as many as seven aircraft available for charter and air medical operations. The scheduled and charter airline service, Kivalliq Air, was developed to enhance the transportation options for passengers required to travel to Winnipeg for medical care. The PC12 aircraft provided a flexible and state of the art platform for travel in the Arctic and was the aircraft initially used for our scheduled flights. As the scheduled airline business grew, the

PC12 was replaced with the 16 passenger Beechcraft 1900C, which continues to offer scheduled flights to Sanikiluaq and back to Winnipeg, three times each week. Today Keewatin Air offers a broad choice in aircraft and locations. Turbine aircraft are based in Winnipeg, Churchill, Rankin Inlet, and Iqaluit. They operate four types of aircraft, including the PC12 as a STOL specialist in the Baffin Region, King Airs for medevac and charter operations, Beechcraft 1900s for charter and scheduled services, and the Learjet 35A for medevac operations. Keewatin Air maintains an air ambulance license in Manitoba but focuses largely on Nunavut. KAL has risen to the challenge as sole provider for medevac services in the Kivalliq and the Baffin Regions. Since 2005, call volumes have increased as has the acuity of the patients. Enhanced training for the flight nurses and respiratory therapists have included advanced airway management and other enhanced skills, allowing KAL to meet the needs of the region. In addition to an exceptional level of air medical care, we offer value added services including medical training for our client, the Government of Nunavut. KAL has continued to offer advanced and basic life support programs for our clients, in order to enhance the quality of care provided in the stabilization of the patients we ultimately transport. In July, 2005 Keewatin Air was sold to the Exchange Industrial Income Fund, becoming the second airline owned by the fund. EIC now owns five airlines, operating one of the largest fleet of aircraft in Canada. 6

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H20 INNOVATION

Crystal Clear H2O Innovation offers water treatment in extreme environments

s the North-American leader in the design and manufacture of custom-designed water treatment systems, H2O Innovation offers integrated solutions for the treatment of wastewater and the production of drinking water under the harshest conditions.

Wastewater Treatment Plant for the Town of Snow Lake The Town of Snow Lake, Manitoba signed a contract with H2O Innovation this past summer for the design, assembly, delivery, and commissioning of a wastewater treatment plant based on its patented BioWheel™ technology. With a capacity of 1,729 cubic meters per day (317 gallons per minute) the packaged plant will include 4 Bio-Wheel™. A similar project completed a few years ago by H2O Innovation in Manhattan, Montana won the American Council of Engineering Companies of Montana Engineering Excellence Grand Project Award for 2009. The Bio-Wheel™ integrated fixed film activated sludge (IFAS) process is a combination of activated sludge and fixed film in a single treatment system, with the advantages of both: the fixed film provides a stable environment which resists upsets, while the activated sludge provides an efficient utilization of available biology by optimizing their environment, providing sufficient oxygen and mixing. This technology presents several advantages: • Sturdiness, simplicity, reliability • Low energy and small footprint • Low noise • Low sludge yields and superior dewatering • Simple controls • Easy maintenance 116 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

Drinking Water for Worker’s Camps Just like lodging and food, drinking water supply is a major challenge for mining worker’s camps in northern Canada. H2O Innovation is well-known for its expertise in membrane filtration technologies and containerized systems. The drinking water production solutions offered by H2O Innovation to the players of the mining industry are flexible, adapted to their needs and easy to use in remote regions.

A Client-Driven Approach Fully aware of the major functional, climatic, and environmental requirements of northern territories, H2O Innovation offers to its customers handy and reliable solutions, which consist of insulated and heated containers with the following benefits: • Constant quality of produced water: Whatever the raw water parameters, the nanofiltration physical barrier removes from water all undesirable substances (contaminants). • Mobility: Containers are easy to move to other sites depending on the client’s needs. • Adaptability: The treatment sequence easily adapts to the various natures of surface water and can also be used to treat some types of groundwater. • Easy Maintenance and Operation: H2O Innovation’s treatment sequence requires minimal intervention from the operator. •N o Dangerous Chemicals: The mem-

brane technology used by H2O Innovation ensures a safe filtration. Discharged water can be sent to storm sewer – with the exception of water resulting from membrane cleaning. In order to remedy this problem, H2O Innovation rotates membrane and cleans them at its plant, which reduces on-site water management requirements and avoids the use of sanitary sewer. •P roven Technology: To produce drinking water for worker’s camps, H2O Innovation uses its “NanH2Ofiltration” technology, which is identical to the technology used for municipal systems. • In-Plant Assembly and Test: The equipment used in the treatment sequence is assembled and tested in an ideally controlled environment at H2O Innovation’s plant in Ham-Nord, QC. H2O Innovation can thus offer better manufacturing lead times and can easily adjust if needed.

A Unique Expertise As a complete solution provider H2O Innovation offers custom-designed solutions for the production of drinking water and industrial process water, the desalination, reclamation and reuse of water, and the treatment of wastewater. Additionally, H2O Innovation offers complete operating and maintenance solutions for membrane filtration and reverse osmosis systems. Headquartered in Quebec City, QC, H2O Innovation also has sales offices in western Canada and the United-States, and counts over 550 systems in operation around the world. 6

BRITESPAN BUILDING SYSTEMS

Got You Covered BRITE Building Solutions by BRITESPAN Building Systems

ased in Ontario, BRITESPAN Building Systems is a premier Canadian manufacturer and distributor of fabric covered buildings with an extensive dealer network across Canada and the U.S. With over 17-years experience in the fabric building industry, they have supplied and constructed over 5,000 fabric covered structures for several different applications including mining, municipal, aggregate, warehousing, and agricultural. Sized have ranged as well having constructed buildings as small as 19 feet wide by 30 feet lone to and as large as 160 feet wide by 937 feet long. From big to small they can cover it all. Custom widths and designs are available for special applications. BRITESPAN Building Systems’ free span design allows for optimal storage space. Some of their building models can achieve an interior 50 foot height in the centre of the building. This allows for trucks to enter the building and dump directly inside, eliminating time and labour moving ma-

118 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

terials in and out of the building. Also, the fabric cover provides great lighting and eliminates the need for costly electrical installations and operation. This creates a safe working environment for your employees. The building seems bright even on the cloudiest of days. BRITESPAN has three different building models to choose from. The Atlas Series is an arch building available in widths from 19 to 82 feet wide. The Genesis Series is a rounded peak building that is available in widths from 60 feet wide to 160 feet wide, and then the Epic Building which has an A-line pitch roof and is available in widths from 60 feet to 160 feet as well. Clients can check out the series’ profiles online to see what building model best suits their building needs The buildings can be customized to meet specific requirements including special door requirements, conveyor systems, internal liners, insulating heating and more. The unique design of BRITESPAN Building Systems’ structures allows for cost effective and reduced installa-

BRITESPAN BUILDING SYSTEMS The buildings can be customized to meet specific requirements including special door requirements, conveyor systems, internal liners, insulating heating and more. tion times. Many different foundations can be used including poured walls, sea containers, cement blocks, floating slabs, and grade beams. Most buildings can also be easily relocated or the company can extend the building if required. CSA/A660 certified, BRITESPAN Buildings are engineered to meet and exceed the site specific wind, snow, and rain loads. BRITESPAN Building Systems can help you with your fabric covered building project from start to finish. Their qualified dealers and building consultants have years of experience and can recommend the right building solution for your building needs. BRITESPAN can also consult with clients regarding foundations; cover replacements for any type of fabric building; capacity calculations; bid specifications; dismantling buildings; service or repairs; and early maintenance inspections. BRITESPAN Building Systems recently opened their new 25,000 square foot manufacturing facility. The new plant is a fabric covered, steel framed building, just as BRITESPAN sells to its own customers. The facility includes a combination of new equipment and existing equipment and new special proprietary equipment. The most important aspect is to double our manufacturing space and make BRITESPAN more efficient in all aspects of manufacturing. To get started on your next building project contact BRITESPAN Building System today. They are not here to sell you a building, they are here to help you build one. For more information, visit us online at www.britespanbuildings.com. 6 2012-2013 Northern Prospector 119

ACTIVATION LABORATORIES

SGH and OSG Superheroes in the fight to find mines By Dale Sutherland, Activation Laboratories Ltd. | dalesutherland@actlabsint.com

ore than ever, mining companies need exploration tools that are economical, faster, robust, and able to locate mineralization with more confidence. Organic geochemistries are filling that need with unprecedented success. SGH has been over 90 per cent effective in orientation surveys which has lead to their repeat use by mining companies for exploration projects. An underlying principal in geochemistry today is that bacteria are ubiquitous and feed on deposits even at great depths. The inorganic elements present help drive the chemistry to synthesize the hydrocarbons necessary for bacteria to flourish. Experiments have shown that the hydrocarbons released in the decomposition of the bacteria retain a signature related to the type of mineralization present. This geochemical signature then ascends and enters into a chemically reduced zone. This Redox zone occurs over ore bodies and other reduced features and has strong chemical gradients both horizontally and vertically. “The resultant electrochemical processes occur throughout the entire sequence of cover materials to the surface” (Hamilton, 2004, 2009).

120 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

SGH has been defined as “Soil Gas Hydrocarbons” since its inception in 1996. From years of research and the development of the new three-dimensional model of the Electrochemical cell (Sutherland, 2011), a better definition for SGH would now be “Spatiotemporal Geochemical Hydrocarbons,” or 3DSGH. SGH detects up to 162 non-gaseous hydrocarbons in the C5 to C17 carbon range, in 19 different chemical classes. The geochromatographic separation of these classes in the overburden results in self-organized pathways that reflects the physics of the new electrochemical cell model. Once at surface, taking a convenient surficial sample of peat, humus, soil, lake-bottom sediment, or even snow will provide a snap-shot of the occurrence of these hydrocarbon fluxes in a survey grid. The 3DSGH interpretation process is able to decipher, identify, and prioritize anomalies that are linked directly to mineralization at depth. In SGH, the specific mixture of the hydrocarbon classes defines a forensic signature that is able to discriminate false anomalies over barren systems from those over mineralized bodies. Many signatures or templates have been defined

ACTIVATION LABORATORIES to identify the target type for copper, gold, nickel, uranium, SEDEX, VMS, lithium pegmatite, IOCG, Cu-Ni-PGE, polymetallic and kimberlite to over 750 metres in depth in a very wide variety of geological and geographical settings. A new Organo-Sulphur Geochemistry (OSG) in development since 2009 is being introduced as another exploration tool. OSG data results have different signatures as expected. It’s specificity in identifying a particular type of mineral deposit is not as capable as that for SGH. Even though more sensitivity is necessary, the anomalies have been dramatic with a higher level of symmetry than observed from SGH data. Thus OSG is becoming more of a targeting geochemistry to further fine tune the location of the centre of Redox conditions in the overburden providing a more accurate drill target for consideration. The Organo-Sulphur Geochemistry need not be used with SGH. However, the inclusion of SGH having proven success, along with results from an inorganic geochemistry, such as enzyme leach or one of the other selective leaches that Activation Laboratories has to offer, results in a very powerful set of tools for exploration. Geophysics can also be considered. The benefits from using the 3D-SGH geochemistry are: • SGH is well known for its success in challenging terrain and/ or complex overburden • Provide spatial vectoring anomalies at surface • The unique hydrocarbon fluxes are detected as clear symmetrical anomalies • The occurrence of specific hydrocarbon classes defines a template as a forensic signature to identify the type of target mineralization at depth • The interpretation of predictable 3D spatial hydrocarbon anomalies provides the highest confidence in interpretation The benefits from using the new Organo-Sulphur Geochemistry (OSG) are: • To provide a detection of the sulphides extracted from mineralization by bacteria • To further confirm SGH anomalies • To provide more accurate delineation of the Redox zone resulting in more accurate drill targets for consideration The successful use of this team of “superheroes” has already been documented. Aura Silver press releases and presentations outline their use of both SGH and OSG to delineate multiple gold and silver targets in the challenging terrain of the central Churchill region of Nunavut in Canada’s far north (www.aurasilver.com). Drilling has positively confirmed mineralization. Figures 1 and 2 illustrate SGH results that indicate an excellent anomaly for gold and describe two targets for silver at Aura Silver’s Greyhound project. Figure 3 illustrates the outstanding symmetry of OSG providing additional target confirmation and potentially the best drill site location as a vertical projection of the centre of Redox conditions. 6 2012-2013 Northern Prospector 121

TECHNOSUB

Technosub The fastest way to effective mining dewatering solutions

here are many pump companies on the market, but very few understand the mining industry and the many trials that a mine has to face when it comes to pumping applications including starting with the correct pump selection. Some important factors that make pump selection crucial are head pressure, flow, presence of slurry, corrosive material, and abrasive material. Usually, the selection of the pumps needs to be made quickly for the customer and an incorrect decision can cost the mine time, production down time, and money. And, once you’re finally done with your pump selection, the mine supervisors have to deal with another problem known as out-of-stock and delivery delays due to companies’ just-in-time inventory policy. Technosub understands that when you contact them, you want to talk to someone who really knows about pumping applications, but also knows and understands the actual needs of a mine. The company has made its name by providing the fastest engineering dewatering

122 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

solutions and equipment delivery in the Canadian mining industry, and always focuses to improve its product durability to last longer under extreme mining conditions. With over 30-years of expertise in mining dewatering solution, Technosub operates across Canada with eight branches; distributes many lines; and manufactures their own products and pump components. Over the years, more than 70 per cent of all the mines in Canada like Vale, Agnico-Eagle, Iamgold, and Xstrata have put their trust in Technosub, because they know they can rely on its expertise to cope with the challenges that arise from dewatering. Technosub has just finished production of its latest high pressure pump in the Technojet series. The Technojet SM is a unique multistage submersible pump designed to accommodate mines looking to pump straight up to the top. This new powerful machine broadens the pump selection available in the Technojet multistage series. Available with a 250hp or 300 hp submersible motor, it can handle up to 1000 PSI / 2361

feet at 275 gallons per minute. For applications where volume is needed, it can also be built for high flow and can handle up to 2,000GPM at 380 feet of head pressure. The Technojet multistage submersible pumps, suction, discharge, and stage casings are made of ductile iron. All internal components are made of duplex stainless steel in order to withstand the hard conditions of mine dewatering. All of the company’s products and solutions are developed and tailored to adapt to its customer’s limitations be they environmental, operational, technical, financial, and more. 6

BESTECH

Savvy Solutions BESTECH offers cutting-edge technology for today’s mining challenges By Anne Frattini

ome of the biggest challenges in the industrial world today are finding methods to conserve energy, reduce environmental impact, and improve workplace safety. Mining operations in particular are seeking ways to help reach these goals. BESTECH, a Northern Ontario firm specializing in engineering, automation, software development, and energy management, offers three software products to help mines address these challenges: NRG1-ECO™, AQM™, and RopeInspector™. With the implementation of these products, mines will reduce energy costs, encourage environmental sustainability, and enhance safety, while increasing operational productivity. Created by BESTECH itself, NRG1-ECO™ is a mine-wide energy management system used for energy consumption optimization applications that can save mining operations millions of dollars in energy costs per year. With five control strategies, NRG1-ECO can be applied to automated equipment and processes such as compressors, pumps, and ventilation to significantly reduce energy consumption. The five control strategies are as follows: • Manual Real-Time Control, which can be used to stop or start any devices through the user interface or to disable them from any programmed automatic function • Environmental Monitoring, where air quality sensors monitor and respond in real-time to CO, NO, SO2, temperature, humidity, barometric atmospheric pressure and air flow • Event-Based Control, where devices will be stopped/started or reduced based on an event • Tagging, where the system instantly responds and increases ventilation when tagged mining personnel or vehicles enter a zone

124 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

• Time-of-Day Scheduling, where the system starts/stops devices at specific times of the day (e.g. start/end of shift). The NRG1-ECO system can be customized to reflect each mine’s needs and protocols in order to leverage the highest Return on Investment (ROI) for each mine site. Consider a mine ventilation system that usually operates at peak capacity 100 per cent of the time. NRG1-ECO’s ventilation module enables the mine to actively control the ventilation system’s air flow with respect to time and location. This ability allows a mine to reduce its ventilation costs by as much as 30 per cent, which represents significant savings given that ventilation usually represents more than 50 per cent of a mine’s energy costs. One of NRG1-ECO’s convenient features is that the software was developed with an open architecture so that it will operate with technology already in use at any mine. Integration is at the core of NRG1-ECO and its ability to incorporate with new or existing mine technology offers mines, old or new, the opportunity to realize significant energy savings, as well as improved worker safety. As an added feature, assistance with Energy Efficiency Grant and Incentive applications is available to mines for both the initial NRG1-ECO site assessment and commissioning to help leverage increased profitability and savings. With the employment of BESTECH’s AQM™ (Air Quality Monitoring) technology, mines are able to improve how they manage emissions. AQM is an ambient air monitoring solution used by the mines as a tool for monitoring their environmental impact on the surrounding communities, so that they can manage their productions accordingly. The technology offers a

BESTECH

variety of options for acquiring and distributing data to various environmental and operational stakeholders, such as the Ministry of the Environment (MOE) in Ontario, who require realtime information about production emission processes. As the MOE sets more stringent provincial air regulations, Ontario smelters are expected to further reduce air emissions. AQM was designed and developed by BESTECH’s own software engineers and the technology is currently in place at the largest SO2 monitoring network in Canada. With the implementation of AQM at the two largest mining companies in Sudbury, Ontario, the software ensures that industries within the Sudbury Basin do not exceed their maximum thresholds for SO2 emissions, helping to protect the environment and welfare of the citizens in Sudbury and the surrounding communities. BESTECH offers a complete service package with AQM: the team will manage the total operation and maintenance of the air quality systems. This package includes instrument calibrations, on-going sites visits and maintenance, assisting with regulatory audits and regular reporting. In 2011, BESTECH added RopeInspector to its inventory of innovative products. The RopeInspector system automates regulated visual rope inspection by providing continuous 360-degree coverage at full hoisting speed. While defect analysis is performed, RopeInspector increases hoisting output

and worker safety, as well as makes more time available for preventative maintenance. It provides early detection of rope failure, which also reduces equipment damage. With a return on investment of less than five weeks, implementation of the system improves efficiency while meeting safety legislation requirements. With RopeInspector, mines have an alternative to the legislated mandatory task of hoist rope inspections. Hoist maintenance personnel is removed from rope proximity and placed in an office setting where they can be responsible for multiple hoists. As a result, mines are meeting and surpassing current regulatory requirements as well as increasing hoisting output and using additional time for maintenance, people and materials movement or extra production. BESTECH is currently developing the third generation of RopeInspector in order to further address the needs of the mining industry. BESTECH’s NRG1-ECO™, AQM™ and RopeInspector are receiving world-wide attention regarding their potential to not only increase operational productivity, but to also save mining companies millions, help sustain the environment and further strengthen workplace safety. For more information about BESTECH’s NRG1-ECO, AQM, RopeInspector and other products and services, please visit www.bestech.com. 6

2012-2013 Northern Prospector 125

SHAW TOOLS

Find Your Niche The new handheld Shaw Tools diamond core dill

he handheld Shaw diamond core drill fills a special niche for field mapping and rock sampling in difficult of access locations. A complete backpack kit of equipment needed to quickly advance borings in even the hardest rock or the most clay rich overburden to a depth of 3.1 metres, and producing handsome core samples of 35 millimetres that weighs just 31.3 kilograms. The units can be carried in panniers loaded on horses or mules, in small boats or on the racks of ATVs. The drill works just as well in confined spaces with the use of an electric motor as it does with a two stroke gasoline engine in the open. Bayonet style slip couplings make connection and disconnection of drill rods much more convenient than ordinary threaded ones. The Shaw drill has been used throughout the world in some of the most difficult of access drilling locations: helicopter delivered on windswept mountain slopes of Antarctica for paleomagnetic investigations, and in ore body investigations in Afghanistan at

elevations of over 4,500 metres, in deep, partially water-filled tunnels in the Philippines, from a small boat anchored over a coral reefs in the Pacific Ocean for geotechnical studies and by men repelling up to 100 metres with an entire kit into deep, abandoned mineshafts for gold prospecting. In late July the maker of the Shaw drill, Shaw Tool of Yamhill, Oregon, began selling a quite novel sort of diamond core bit. This new bit has dozens of densely packed, small, sintered diamond discs silver soldered into pockets in the body of the bits brass walls. This novel “elephant tooth” bit (patent pending) is considerably faster cutting, longer lived (three times or more) and far more resistant to damage than conventional diamond crowned or segment-tipped diamond bits. The new diamond bit cuts faster than conventional ones because water circulation is much better; 15 or more, shallow but quite effective high pressure and high flow waterways clean the grinding surface of rock cuttings. The new bit is longer lived because there

is so very much more diamond sintered material along its axis. For example, in the first release of the new bit of 41 millimetres diameter there is 21 millimetres of high diamond density material embedded in the sidewall as opposed to the usual six millimetres offered at the tip of a conventional diamond crown of similar diameter. The new bit is so extremely resistant to damage that it can literally be pounded flat with a sledge hammer without suffering brass body metal tearing, disc breaking or joint failure. The use of the exceptionally portable Shaw drill with XRF field analyzer guns, and GPS locating equipment allow field teams to effectively map mineralized areas difficult to investigate As one mineral exploration geologist recently stated, “The traditional tools of the field geologist were the compass, the hand lens and the geologists pick. Now the compass has been replaced by GPS, the hand lens by the XRF portable field analyzer and the geologists pick by the Shaw portable core drill.” 6

DEL

Communications Inc.

Suite 300, 6 Roslyn Road, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada R3L 0G5 Toll Free:1.866.831.4744 Toll Free Fax: 1.866.711.5282 www.delcommunications.com

��

�� We offer outstanding personal service and quality in the areas of:

CREATIVE DESIGN | ADVERTISING SALES TRADE PUBLICATIONS QUALIFIED SALES & EDITORIAL TEAM

126 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

THE ANSWER is Darby Manufacturing. We carry a wide selection of seats specially designed for mining industries. The T-back style seat offers great comfort by giving you all the freedom you need to dangle your lighting equipment on the outside of the seat. The Grammer seat with a 4 point seat belt for extra security offers a low frequency suspension that lessens vibrations to your back. The NTS air suspension Isri seat, offers economically shaped backrest that takes fatigue out of driving, dual lumbar support, side bolsters, heat cushions and much more. So take the leap, choose Darby and enjoy life after work!

WHEREVER THEREâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S MINING, WEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;RE THERE.

www.kramer.ca 2012-2013 Northern Prospector 127

FALCON PERFORMANCE FOOTWEAR

Superior Comfort, Safety, and Service Falcon mining boots work hard for your feet

t’s time to go to work. You check the

temperature out-

side: -20 degrees C. No worries. You get dressed and pull on your pair of Falcon Mining Boots. You are ready for the day, knowing that you will be warm, comfortable, and safe in your Falcon Boots. So comfortable that you can wear them on your way to work and while working. Outside, your boots keep you steady with good traction on snow and ice. At work, your boots keep you safe with a composite toe cap and flexible foam

Falcon Performance Footwear’s™ Falcon Mining Boots are

designed for superior comfort and safety in the most challenging environments. Built on an athletic shoe platform, the boots flex like running shoes and have no break-in period. They are comfortable right out of the box. The Vibram™ Fire-and-Ice sole will keep you steady on snow, ice, and rock. The GORETEX® interior boot lining makes sure that your feet stay dry. S.B. Foot’s™ Leather for Life is tough and resistant to petroleum and caustics. And, the PORON XRD™ flexible foam metatarsal guard provides the best comfort of any met guard. Falcon Mining Boots are ASTM and CSA certified, while Falcon is ISO9001 certified and a licensed GORE-TEX facility.

Falcon has been making quality footwear since 1963, and

handcrafts each pair of boots at their facility at Auburn, Maine. They also welcome an opportunity to give wearers a tour of their manufacturing center, CAD/Engineering department, and our Quality Engineering Lab. You can watch your boots being made then enjoy an authentic Maine lobster dinner.

metatarsal guard. And at the end of the day, you know that your

Falcon boots are available in 8-inch and 10-inch styles, and

Falcon boots will help get you home safe and sound.

come in black. 6

For more information on how to get a pair of Falcon boots, call us (207-784-9186) or email (rlandry@falconpf.com), or visit our web site at www.falconpf.com. Visit us at Booth 2104 during the CIM Conference and Exhibition, May 5-8 2013, Metro Toronto Convention Center, Toronto, and at Booth 815 during the World Mining Conference, August 11-15, 2013, Palais des Congres de Montreal, Montreal. 128 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

CanDig INC.

Invention, Innovation, Improvisation CanDig Inc. wins kudos from clients and industry

hat separates a good invention from a great one is often the product’s versatility. Whether it’s a video game, a skateboard, or a miniexcavator designed and built in Kamloops, the more things the user can do with it, the greater the appreciation. But improvisation is the key to business success and is at the heart of the innovative and adaptable CanDig excavator. Case in point: a Dawson City Mining Exploration company asked if it was possible to bring one of these small, newfangled award-winning CanDig excavators down a mountain slope, then do some trench exploration. The customer thought it unlikely because the terrain was steep and “difficult to get into,” he said. That proved to be an understatement. The CanDig “Mining CD21” was air lifted by helicopter into the alpine, then began inching its descent down the hill, but recalls that he was ready to jump off and let it tumble down the slope, over the cliff and into the river far below. “If that would have happened, I’d have climbed back to the top of the mountain, got in the helicopter, return to town and bought another CanDig!” Well-known Yukon prospector of the year, Shawn Ryan, is a fan of the CanDig Mini Excavators. “We needed a small excavator that could be used for mineral exploration that was helicopter portable. The CanDig excavator appeared to be the best one as it was the lightest and had already proven its worth as a trenching machine. It was instrumental in the White Gold discovery of Underworld Resources in the Yukon. Now we are using nine of them on other Yukon projects with great success. The CanDig Mini Excavator follows up soil anomalies and can dig down to nine feet in depth. A Bell Long Ranger helicopter can easily carry the excavator to the exploration site or we break

it down into two pieces when using the smaller Bell JetRanger 206 helicopter.” Stability on uneven ground, being helicopter transportable, and coming fully equipped with more spare parts than will ever be needed have made the “Mining CD21” the new exploration method of choice. It now has an auger feature that adds to its versatility, and allows prospectors to probe nine feet deeper into the ground. Such utilitarian features won CanDig Inc. a Canadian Trade Commission nomination as best exporting company for 2005, and Technology Innovator award in 2007. Indeed, CanDig Inc. had already won many awards, according to company founder and president Gordon Leschyson, who started the company 11 years ago in his Kamloops carport. Since then, CanDig Inc. has grown from a oneman/one mini-excavator operation to an international manufacturer of several models, plus accessories. To date, CanDig has built more than 250 excavators, many of which are far from home, including Jamaica, U.S., Algeria, South Africa, Spain, France, England, Ireland, Czeck Republic, Romania, Iceland, Buhtan, and Colombia. The company now consists of five full-time employees and several international dealers working exclusively for CanDig. All this has been done without hiring a single salesperson nor extensive advertising. In fact, once the word was out about the new product, “customers simply call up to place orders,” says Leschyson. “Word-of-mouth advertising means happy owners are saying good things about CanDig products to their friends. It would be tempting to think that CanDig’s success is due to product development. That’s part of it, since the federal government has provided us with seven grants, as well as academic support. But, the real

reason for its growth is more basic. People don’t go out and buy mini-excavators. What customers are looking for is an affordable tool that will do what they need. Digging needs vary greatly from one person to another so we tailor our manufacturing to come up with unique solutions for their unique needs. With prospectors, they need a digger that is portable and reliable to use in remote areas. I understand that because I grew up on a trapline in the Yukon, and had to rely on my skidoo in extremely remote conditions.” You can see CanDig doing what it does so well at www.candig.com, or check the “demonstration” page to see if it’s convenient to arrange for your own personal live demonstration at various locations. 6

Portable Trenching Solutions

Soil Sampling Auger Now Available!

“Mining CD21”

www.candig.com 1-800-509-5656 2012-2013 Northern Prospector 129

MSA

Past and Present MSA brings the innovation from their founding fathers into today’s products

t MSA, their business is safety. They have been the world’s leading manufacturer of high-quality safety products since 1914, providing sophisticated devices and protective gear which is the result of countless research and development hours, relentless testing, and an unwavering commitment to quality that ultimately saves lives and protects thousands of men and women each day.

History in Mining In the early 1900s, people lost their lives in U.S. mines every day. Over 1,000 died in a single year within 100 miles of the city of Pittsburgh alone. When the United States Bureau of Mines formed a Mine Rescue Division in 1910, mining engineers John T. Ryan Sr. and George Deike Sr., were among the first to join. In fact, on his second day of training with the newly formed bureau, Ryan was abruptly dispatched to direct rescue operations at the exploded Ott mine in Elk Garden, West Virginia. With him was a caged canary utilized to detect carbon monoxide. The thought was that since a bird breathed faster, it would supposedly absorb gas and its effects faster than a man who was inhaling the gas simultaneously. This obviously was not a reliable gas detection method. But this time, Ryan’s canary proved dependable because as they penetrated deeper into the mine, the bird began to falter and finally slipped from its perch, so Ryan was able to save his crew. Samples that Ryan and others brought back to the bureau for mine gas analysis eventually paved the way for the retirement of the fallible canary in its role as a gas detector. Having the same determined desire to bring safe practices, proper protective gear, and dependable rescue equipment to the mines, both Ryan and Deike agreed that this mission could only be 130 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

accomplished by a company that would make the necessary equipment and spread the “gospel of safety.” So, on June 14, 1914, Ryan and Deike shook hands and the Mine Safety Appliances Company was born. The company started with simple things: first aid kits, signs in five languages (because of the large number of immigrants in the mines), and rudimentary breathing equipment and instrumentation. Their earliest significant contribution to safety was the flameless electric miners cap lamp. With a concept in hand, they beseeched the assistance of Thomas Edison to help develop a miniaturized, reliable battery. Edison was eventually swayed by their stories and helped with its inception. Later in life, Edison said that of all the things he had ever invented, the Flameless Electric Cap Lamp was the one that did the most for humanity. Since the company’s founding in 1914, MSA’s mission has gone unchanged: That men and women may work in safety and that they, their families and their communities may live in health throughout the world.

Portable Gas Detection Today ALTAIR® 4X – The ALTAIR 4X Multigas Detector surpasses industry standards in several crucial areas. Its four-year sensor life is 60 per cent longer than the industry average, while its 24hour run time exceeds the industry average by 71 per cent. This versatile portable detector is a perfect match for industries ranging from fire fighting to welding, and its digital sensor output makes it less likely to suffer from RF interference. The unit features exclusive MotionAlert™, which lets others know if the user has become immobile, and InstantAlert™, a manual alarm that alerts others of potentially dangerous situations. This rugged unit is designed to withstand a drop of up

to 20-feet and uses less than half as much calibration gas as the industry average. ALTAIR 5X – The rugged, multifeatured ALTAIR 5X Multigas Detector boasts several options that provide maximum safety and make it easy to use in even the most demanding situations. It features large buttons for easy use, and its polycarbonate housing protects the detector for drops of up to 10 feet. The detector also boasts the exclusive MotionAlert™, which lets others know if the user has become immobile, and InstantAlert™, a manual alarm that alerts others if a dangerous situation has arisen. The glow-in-the-dark housing makes it easy to see in a confined space, while the large buttons and bright display makes operation possible even when the user is wearing gloves. Topgard® Protective Cap and Hat is made of durable polycarbonate and featuring a uniridge design, the caps are specifically designed for use by utilities and other industries where head protection with dielectric protection is necessary. The Topgard® Protective Hats are specially designed for use in elevated temperature environments and wherever dielectric protection is needed. Both the Topgard® Protective Cap and Hat retain limited resistance to top impact or penetration over a wide range of temperatures. Withstands radiant heat loads up to 275° F and is available in a variety of colours in either a slotted or non-slotted design. 6

Head Protection Beyond Comparison

Topgard caps and hats are built using lightweight yet durable High Density Polycarbonate, the toughest of all thermoplastics, Polycarbonate withstands higher radiant heat loads and has a lower brittleness temperature than most thermoplastics. Topgard Caps and hats therefore perform better than Polyethylene caps and hats in extreme temperatures and where dielectric protection is necessary.

MSA North America â&#x20AC;˘ 1-800-MSA-2222

Please visit our newly launched website:

www.MSAsafety.com

Because every life has a purpose...

NRB

Solid Gold

Building off site can simplify construction

ining companies are striving to find faster, safer, and more cost efficient ways to build their permanent surface structures, and in response, modular building companies have been designing and building very notable construction solutions using steel and concrete building technology. Single or multi-story mine dry buildings, administration facilities or operations centres, as well as sophisticated equipment enclosures, can all be built off site under controlled conditions at the plant, then transported to the mine site as much as 95 per cent complete, installed on foundations and commissioned. Building off-site is a much faster process that improves on-site safety by significantly reducing site related activities and disruption, as compared to traditional methods.

A Case Study In 2008, Xstrata Nickel, a leading developer of mineral resources around the world, contracted with NRB Inc., a leader in off-site permanent modular construction technology in Canada and the U.S., to design, build, and commission a 60,000 square foot administration/dry facility – the first LEED Gold certified project for both companies in Canada, and one of the first ever for the commercial modular construction industry. Driven by the need for a much shorter construction schedule, and reduced impact from the hazards of on-site construction, Xstrata Nickel and their consultants, explored the current trends and technology available with permanent modular construction. The decision to switch project delivery methods from traditional “on-site” to modular “off-site” was reached when it became apparent that it was the only possible way to hit the critical completion schedule just 10 months away. The off-site construction process could complete the project for the owner in less than half the time of conventional, all with considerably less on-site disruption and disturbance. 132 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

A “Whole Building” Integrated Approach This first and most critical step in this design-build LEED project was to bring together a team of highly qualified designers with the appropriate experiences. Lead by NRB, the owner, the building architect, mechanical, electrical and structural engineers, along with an independent consultant specializing in LEED design review and certification, worked together to define the integral strategies and designs needed to achieve the superior level of sustainability that would result in LEED Gold certification. From the initial kick-off workshop facilitated by the LEED consultant, through the regularly scheduled design review meetings and on to the building construction, installation and final commissioning, the project was very carefully choreographed. Each individual design element was considered for its potential impact on another, to ensure the highest possible level of whole building performance was achieved.

Project Phasing To help minimize the amount of construction activity and related safety concerns on the mine site, the project was built, shipped and installed in three phases. Phase I was the critical Operations Center, which is 20,000 square feet of space that houses the electrical and mechanical repair shops, team, safety and meeting rooms, mine operational control, lamp racks, and tool room. It’s where the miners stop each day before and after their shifts to pick up or drop off equipment and to meet for their safety talks before descending into the mine.

FROM CONCEPT... TO COMPLETION

Xstrata Nickel Rim South Project â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 60,000 sq. ft. Administration/Dry modular facility built off-site by NRB, LEED Gold certified.

Our off-site construction delivers in half the time of conventional methods. Sophistication, strength, speed and sustainability are the cornerstones of buildings by NRB. Designed to meet your exact needs from architectural expression to operational requirements, our advanced off-site building technology and project delivery method gives you the permanence and performance of conventional construction, but in half the time. Building your project off-site in our controlled plant environment results in better waste management, less downtime and improved quality during construction. When an NRB building arrives at your site it is already up to 95% complete, significantly reducing on-site activity as well as vehicular traffic from material deliveries and workforce travel.

This results in a cleaner, safer construction site with minimal disruption to your business and the surrounding community. At NRB, we continue to research and apply more sustainable building principles to our methods and materials. Whether you choose NRB modular construction simply as a faster, more eco-friendly way to build, or you are following the LEED roadmap to sustainable design, we can help you. NRB works closely with you from design through to occupancy, for almost any type of commercial, institutional or industrial building application.

To find out all your possibilities today, call 1-888-249-9194.

Web: www.nrb-inc.com Email: inquiries@nrb-inc.com NRB Inc. 115 South Service Road W., P.O. Box 129, Grimsby, Ontario L3M 4G3 NRB (USA) Inc. 440 Wenger Drive, Ephrata, PA 17522 Specializing in the Mining Industry with permanent Mine Dry Facilities, Operations Centres and Administrative Offices.

BU ILD O FF- SITE ... SIMPLIF Y YO U R CON S T RU C T ION 2012-2013 Northern Prospector 133

NRB

Phase II was the “clean” locker/shower room facility for 450 personnel. It is also the “dry” facility, a 20 foot high room with hanging locker baskets that suspend miners work clothes in the air so powerful heaters can dry them. These drying requirements, along with the considerable hot water demands presented challenges to the building designers who were targeting substantial energy conservation. Phase III was the two story administration area for all Xstrata Nickel staff and executive personnel. It is connected to the “dry” by a central atrium corridor open from the ground floor up to a clerestory roof almost 30 feet above. Glass railings, retroplated concrete flooring, and exposed ductwork throughout give a sense of expanse and architectural expression.

tices, Xstrata Nickel was able to capture 40 of the 41 points ap-

LEED Gold Points

struction along with pre-poured concrete floors offer strength,

Through demanding design and quality construction prac-

About NRB: Since 1979, NRB has demonstrated industry leadership and created client trust through innovative modular building design and construction. With full-service facilities in Canada and the United States, NRB delivers industrial, commercial, institutional and retail buildings of impressive design, finish, durability and performance that rival site-built construction for architectural detail and exceptional performance over time. For more information visit www.nrb-inc.com.

134 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

plied for, giving them LEED Gold certification.

The Xstrata Nickel Rim project was completed in just

10-months from design development through to commissioning. Of that, only four months were actually spent working on the busy mine site – a considerable reduction in activity and time as compared to site built construction. In August 2010, Xstrata Nickel Rim South Project received its LEED Gold Certification.

With permanent modular construction technology by NRB,

there is no compromise to an owner or architects design preferences or sustainability choices in building science, finishes or building operating systems. Structural steel post and beam conperformance and complete design flexibility. 6 About Xstrata: “Xstrata is a global diversified mining group, listed on the London and Swiss Stock Exchanges, with its headquarters in Zug, Switzerland. Xstrata’s businesses maintain a meaningful position in seven major international commodity markets: copper, coking coal, thermal coal, ferrochrome, nickel, vanadium and zinc, with a growing platinum group metals business, additional exposures to gold, cobalt, lead and silver, recycling facilities and a suite of global technology products, many of which are industry leaders. The Group’s operations and projects span 19 countries.” For more information visit www.xstrata.com.

THE SASKATCHEWAN ASSOCIATION OF OPTOMETRISTS

Help Me Choose My Safety Glasses What to wear over your eyes and why By Darren Mirau, OVC Coordinator at The Saskatchewan Association of Optometrists

rotective safety eyewear is a must in the industrial setting, but picking the right frames and lenses can be overwhelming. The following information may bring things into focus for you. First, when choosing a frame it is important to remember that “safety may not be sexy” and that the priority of safety glasses is to protect your eyes from injury. A good selection of “cool” frames are available these days. Proper fit of the frame is priority to give maximum coverage of the eye and therefore maximum safety. Well-fitted frames should fit close to the brow and cheek line and are equipped with permanent side shields. The Z94.3 marking on them confirm that they meet the CSA standards. Next you need to choose your lenses. Your doctor’s office staff will happily guide you through this process and help you to make decisions regarding lens styles, materials, coatings, and other features. The one coating that should always be applied to prescription safety eyewear is the highest quality scratch resistant coating available. This coating is not “scratch proof” but will be the best way to prolong the life of your eyewear. Other popular lens options include antireflection and ultraviolet (UV) coatings, tints, and photo chromatic lenses. The choice of these will be considered based on your specific job requirements or past personal preference. Anti-reflection coatings are recommended for computer users and for use in cutting down glare therefore making it easier to see clearly. This type of coating may only be applied to specific lens materials to maintain lens strength. It can also be harder to keep clean in a dusty working environment. Recommended UV protection is obtained through scratch resistant and anti-reflective coatings but can be applied independently to ensure 100 per cent coverage up to the 400 nanometer range.

As UV exposure can lead to corneal damage, check with your optometrist to ensure that you have sufficient UV coverage for your occupational needs. CSA standards approve light tints for indoor use that block no more than 30 per cent of light. This is a permanent tint that some find helpful for glare reduction. This tint intensity is not considered a sunglass. If your company allows a second pair as prescription safety sunglasses, they can be manufactured to your desired tint intensity and should be used for outdoor use only. Photo chromatic lenses lighten inside and darken when exposed to UV light. It is the employers decision whether to allow these lenses as the CSA has not included them in their guidelines and are recommended for employees spend-

ing time outdoors. With the popularity of this type of lens in general use glasses, you may find it necessary to have this feature in safety eyewear. The length of time required for a photo chromatic lens to lighten when returning indoors could be hazardous without adaptation. When you receive your new safety glasses an initial visual assessment and fitting will be done with the dispensing staff. Some lenses will require an adaptation period but any abnormal blurring; peripheral distortion or visual acuity problems are unsafe and unacceptable in the work environment. These concerns should be addressed immediately. Remember that once you have prescription safety eyewear; make sure that they protect your eyes and not your pocket. 6

Occupational Vision Care Program Tailor Our Program To Meet Your Company’s Safety Eyewear Needs

The Saskatchewan Association of Optometrists 108-2366 Avenue C North Saskatoon, Saskatchewan S7L 5X5

www.optometrists.sk.ca Phone: (306) 652-2069 Email: saoovc@sasktel.net

TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOUR EMPLOYEES EYE SAFETY

2012-2013 Northern Prospector 135

SkyTEM CANADA

Above and Beyond SkyTEM Canada gives you more than a moment (geophysically speaking)

kyTEM Surveys has launched a truly unique and beneficial airborne time-domain electromagnetics (TDEM) system that is beginning to show its influence in the exploration community. Developed in Denmark, the SkyTEM is a powerful helicopter-borne system employed globally to explore for natural resources and conduct environmental and engineering investigations. Scandinavian countries have been taking advantage of SkyTEM technology since 2004. The system has flown numerous mineral exploration programs in Finland, Sweden, Norway, and Greenland and many previously unknown mineralized zones of nickel, copper, iron, and gold have been discovered. The SkyTEM method has been flying in Canada since spring 2011, and since then this versatile technology has been increasingly in demand for a wide variety of subsurface exploration projects. These include mapping different gold deposit types in the Yukon and B.C. A global potash producer used SkyTEM in Saskatchewan to help them protect aquifers, as well as aid in the selection of an appropriate site for placement of mine tailings. Geoscience BC and four partner companies selected SkyTEM for an energy project in the Horn River Basin of B.C. The USGS recognizes the high resolution capabilities of SkyTEM and uses it for

136 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

aquifer mapping and volcano slope stability studies, including Mt. St Helens. Most recently, the system contributed to the discovery of a large tonnage, high-grade graphite deposit in Alaska (see http:// graphiteoneresources.com/news/2012/). Upon demobilization from that project the system is on its way back to B.C. for more gold work.

The SkyTEM Method There are several significant developments that differentiate SkyTEM from all other TDEM systems. Conventional TDEM systems have focused on increasing transmitter power at the expense of not adequately resolving subtle nearer surface changes in geology that are an important part of finding economic mines. The SkyTEM method is engineered to deliver accurate high resolution maps from the very near surface to depths of hundreds of metres and is able to pro-

duce results comparable to data collected by calibrated ground geophysical instruments. In order to accomplish this SkyTEM engineers developed an innovative approach â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the capability to operate in dual transmitter modes â&#x20AC;&#x201C; a Low Moment with fast turn for early-time data and shallow imaging, and a High Moment with high current for high-quality late-time data and deep imaging. SkyTEM is the only system able to operate in Dual Transmitter Mode. In addition to delivering an accurate reading of the entire nearsurface-to-depth interval, the two moments substantially increase the chances of delineating between weak geological contrasts and resistive layers. The systems can be customized for maximum performance such as a Single Moment, based solely on High Moment, and in resistive geology depths of up to 600 metres are obtainable. Another principal difference is provided in the breakthrough receiver coil design. All TDEM systems are plagued by the interference and noise created by their own primary signal but the SkyTEM receiver eliminates this bias response resulting in the acquisition of rich clean data. Post acquisition data manipulation is minimized and preliminary data, including 1D inversions, can be delivered within two days of acquisition. Management decisions on further investigations

SkyTEM CANADA

and in-fill lines can be made while the system and crew are still on site. The extremely high signal to noise ratio also contributes to an increase in confidence when determining overburden thickness and modeling of the deeper geology. SkyTEM offers a suite of systems, SkyTEM101, SkyTEM304 and SkyTEM-508. Each of these system names is based on the area of the transmitter loop (135 m2, 345 m2 and 540 m2) and the number of turns in the loop – one, four or eight. The systems can be configured quickly on-site (e.g., SkyTEM504 single mode to maximize penetration depth) to suit the specific geological setting and to maximize depth and resolution for optimal exploration results. All SkyTEM systems, regardless of the loop area, are designed around basic principles and common elements that further differentiate them from all other TDEM systems. Signal drift is something that conventional systems must deal with but SkyTEM is one-time calibrated. In ad-

dition to enriching the received signal there is no need for time consuming high altitude calibration/ verification flights at regular intervals during each sortie. This saves fuel and is of benefit when low ceiling or bad weather could restrict survey productivity. Well calibrated data that doesn’t need to be corrected for drift also makes it possible to create accurate 1-D and 2-D numerical inversion to determine the 3-D extent of geologic features Recognized by the industry as having the closest-to-square wave form SkyTEM’s transmitter is highly stable and reduces uncertainties in the measured response and the forward model. All sensors, including the magnetometer, inclinometers, laser altimeters and GPS are mounted on the rigid carrier frame and flown at low altitude ensuring that all measurements are recorded as close to the ground as possible. This allows for increased accuracy and the collection of the high lateral and horizontal resolution. The ability to precisely deter-

mine where the system is in three-dimensional space contribute to data accuracy. Installation of the system is straightforward. SkyTEM has its own power supply and unlike other airborne systems no certificate for installation is required. This provides for quick and economical start up and the ability to use a variety of helicopter types and models worldwide. No operator is required in the helicopter. This reduces weight and fuel consumption and serves to reduce risk as there is only one person aboard the aircraft during survey flying. The system is very robust and can fly in challenging weather conditions reducing downtime. The most recent advancement is the SkyTEM508’s ability to deliver B-field measurements. This increases the maximum conductance that SkyTEM can detect and improves the detection of higher conductance sources within a weakly conductive overburden response and the detection of deeper conductors. 6

2012-2013 Northern Prospector 137

MILLER THOMSON LLP

On Your Terms Getting the most out of your option agreement

Submitted by Miller Thomson LLP

askatchewan is rapidly moving to the forefront as a premiere mining jurisdiction. Saskatoon is headquarters for global leaders in both uranium and potash production. Most other multinational mining companies have also set up shop in the province. A common agreement used in the mining industry is the Option Agreement. An Option Agreement is one of the methods that a junior exploration company may use to bring in a senior company to provide additional capital to explore a particular property. There are various forms of Option Agreement, but such an agreement will generally include a grant by the optionor (the property owner) to the optionee of a right, for a set period of time, to elect to acquire the property, or an interest in that property, for an agreed price. The Option Agreement will also generally include a licence to enter the property and carry out certain exploration activities. In most Option Agreements the optionee will have no obligation to exercise the option and the optionor may withdraw at any time prior to acceptance by the optionor. In the event of a dispute, courts in Saskatchewan may refuse the optionor’s ability to withdraw the offer if the withdrawal happens after performance of the contract has already started. As such, it is important that in any Option Agreement for a mining property in Saskatchewan the optionee has paid the optionor a sum of money in consideration for being granted and exercising the option. This exchange is essential to form a binding agreement.

138 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

Prior to execution of an Option Agreement parties are advised to enter into a letter of intent (LOI). The LOI should address a number of preliminary issues which allow the Option Agreement to be drafted more efficiently and collaboratively. As is the case in other mining jurisdictions, the optionee should conduct due diligence procedures in order to ensure that the option or owns the mineral interests it is offering in the Option Agreement. The optionee will generally hire lawyers to inquire into recorded and unrecorded interests in the property, and whether any other persons or groups need to be consulted with or notified before the project can begin. The timing and scope of this due diligence process is usually addressed in the LOI. The Government of Saskatchewan is currently working on developing a new electronic registry for the issuance and management of mineral dispositions called the Mineral Administration Registry Saskatchewan (MARS). MARS is scheduled to come online in fall 2012. MARS will transpose the same survey grid in southern Saskatchewan to all of northern Saskatchewan. It is assumed that once MARS is operational, it will provide a more efficient starting point for the due diligence process. Searches of MARS will likely become part of any due diligence or enforcement process to ascertain ownership of certain mineral rights for mining projects, particularly in northern Saskatchewan. Those involved in Saskatchewan mining properties should closely consider a number of issues related to Option Agreements before having them prepared or signing them. This includes a number of basic terms which should be included in any Option Agreement, as well as a critical examination of “standard” boilerplate language used in other Option Agreements which may not be “standard” in Saskatchewan or Canada. The practical business issues created by a poorly drafted Option Agreement can be real and very risky. As such, it is best to have an experienced Saskatchewan-based lawyer review their client’s needs and tailor an Option Agreement to meet the client’s specific requirements. A properly negotiated and drafted Option Agreement is a critical document on the path to success of a mining project in Saskatchewan. 6

ExplorE thE hiddEn gEm

Your next mining law firm could be the one you havenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t considered before. It has experienced lawyers across Canada who work closely with the mining community, helping businesses of all sizes grow through innovative financing, mergers and acquisitions, agreements (options, joint ventures, exploration and royalty), in addition to providing local expertise in environmental, First Nations and taxation law. We are Miller Thomson. With offices in Regina and Saskatoon, in addition to a network of nine offices across Canada, we offer the local expertise and national reach that could make us your next mining law firm. Contact us to discover the possibilities. Regina 306.347.8300 regina@millerthomson.com

Saskatoon 306.665.7844 saskatoon@millerthomson.com

Added experience. Added clarity. Added value.

Miller Thomson LLP

millerthomson.com

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ROCKWELL AUTOMATION

Create Information Connections Effectively managing a mining operation today requires actionable production intelligence By John MacDonald, Midwest Canada sales manager, Rockwell Automation

n unstable economy has shown businesses what the mining industry has known for decades – a successful business location today may not succeed in the future. Unexpected expenses, natural events and workforce changes have a big impact on the costs of production. To help focus production and maintenance budgets, mining executives are increasingly turning to production metrics to make key decisions.

The Role of Mine and Mill Data Companies employ a variety of information systems to allow employees to accomplish their operational tasks, and each worker is focused on the metrics, or KPIs, for his or her individual function. For example, machine operators monitor throughput and cycle time to keep their machines running continuously to meet daily production quotas. Meanwhile, the maintenance teams 140 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

monitor machine performance, OEE and meantime between failure to predict and help prevent downtime. However, this information often stays within departments and is rarely shared across systems. To harness this wealth of untapped “production intelligence,” companies must overcome the barriers to collecting, correlating, visualizing and sharing information with the overall operation. Putting this information to work requires automated software tools, new practices and behaviours. In return, real-time data on the cost and quality of production allows management to better set immediate priorities, as well as capital expenses for the next year to optimize capacity.

The New Production Intelligence Production intelligence is a strategy for turning automation control system and business system data into insightful

information that is visible and useful to people at various levels of the organization. Effective production-intelligence software applications seamlessly share related data from maintenance and quality systems, and automation and control systems in a single, coherent environment. New software applications are available within mining process control systems or as separate applications that can be easily configured within existing systems. These tools can access, aggregate, and correlate information, and present it as dashboards, reports and charts via standard browsers like Internet Explorer or through Microsoft Excel. For example, the FactoryTalk software suite from Rockwell Automation leverages industry standards and a unified production model to provide a cohesive view of seemingly disparate mining data from process controllers and historians, business systems and multiple SQL databases. It gives context for relationships among equipment, raw materials, ore, and people. In potash mining, the goal is to extract the maximum amount of potash. The muck is typically hoisted up a shaft and must be mixed with reagent chemicals in flotation cells. The process in the flotation cells creates layers of foam, water, potash and mineral waste of varying density. These layers make it difficult to monitor exactly what is happening in the cell and to effectively adjust reagent levels. A lack of visibility ties operators’ hands, so they are not able to optimize process control to maximize production The information-enabled, PlantPAx™ process automation system from Rockwell Automation enables mining

ROCKWELL AUTOMATION companies to take advantage of model predictive control (MPC) software so operators can push flotation cell constraints to their limits. The FactoryTalk VantagePoint production intelligence software can then present all this information in real-time in an easy-to-access and contextualized manner. MPC uses dynamic models to predict a change in dependent variables caused by changes in independent variables. Implementations of MPC have been shown to successfully increase throughput by up to eight per cent in mining applications, reduce variability 45 per cent and reduce emissions by 35 per cent. In ball mills, similar results have been obtained. MPC provides operators with aggregated data points needed to use as few reagents as possible while optimizing quality and quantity of potash. The FactoryTalk VantagePoint software can combine flotation cell information with metrics on the cost of reagents and other raw materials, current sales prices on potash, and mine production. Managers can access this information from their desktops or mobile devices and make decisions like whether to increase production at one mine or idle another based on real-time information. Another benefit is that mill operators do not have to produce summary reports to

share with the managers because that information is already visible on the manager’s dashboard. The power of reporting via a unified production model is that information is federated, meaning that the data always remains at its original source, coming directly from the controller. Reports, KPIs and dashboards always benefit from the most up-to-date information. Leaving the original data intact also helps maintain one version of the truth. The same cannot be said for solutions that use custom code to aggregate data across the enterprise, a process that is often costly, time consuming and prone to human errors.

Faster, More Informed Decision Making When using production intelligence software, data can be integrated into a single information management application server, and the server supports both data management and decision support. Users, supervisors and management receive relevant, role-based reports, dashboards and KPIs using a simple web browser. Thus, they are empowered to help solve mining problems before they hurt the bottom line. For example: • Equipment operators are able to study overall equipment efficiency and mean time between failures.

• Engineering and maintenance managers can view efficiency data from areas of the operation to better meet quota and production goals. • Quality managers can view ore grade and monitor product quality. • Mine and mill managers and operational vice presidents can view cross-operations data and metrics for individual areas, such as real-time cost of production. • Senior executives can continually evaluate real-time production information and correlate it with business intelligence tools to better understand overall mill productivity and financial performance. Finally, extensive security features helps users to protect process confidentiality and specify who is allowed to read, write, access or change any of the data coming from different sources. This marks a major step forward in the security of corporate information. Mines and mills of the future will increasingly leverage production intelligence, eventually becoming a closed loop in which vital, relevant information flows seamlessly, in real-time, throughout the organization. To keep up with the competition, companies need to lay the foundation today. FactoryTalk and PlantPAx are trademarks of Rockwell Automation, Inc. 6

At Westburne, We Value Your Business. See for yourself why Westburne is the leading electrical material distributor in Canada. We provide our valued customers with local access, support and inventory on a wealth of products and services .Visit us in person at any of our 12 conveniently located Midwest branches or speak with one our friendly and knowledgeable Order Desk Representatives by phone. Looking for 24/7 instant access to your account, orders, or information about our products and services? Register today for a Westburne Web Account and see how placing your next order online can benefit you.

Manitoba

Winnipeg (Head Office) Unit 1 - 1650 Notre Dame Ave. (204) 954-9900

Brandon 346 Park Ave. E. (204) 571-2333

Dauphin 423 - 1st Ave. S.E. (204) 638-5328

St. Boniface 400A - Turenne St. (204) 954-9901

Thompson 200 Hayes Road (204) 778-7041

Saskatchewan Estevan 300 Kensington Ave. (306) 634-7225

Prince Albert 380 - 16th St. W. (306) 922-4545

Regina 264 - 1st Ave. E. (306) 721-2500

Saskatoon 2727 - 1st Ave. N. (306) 933-2992

Esterhazy 911 Gonczy Ave. (306) 745-3603

Take advantage of our Web Reward Program

open 24/7

@Westburne_MW 2012-2013 Northern Prospector 141

HORIZON STRUCTURES

Quality Materials Build Quality Buildings Horizon Structures build fabric-covered buildings that are used for a wide variety of uses and conditions By Anne-Marie Brennan

orizon Structures, located in Sherwood Park, Alberta, is a family owned business that produces top-of-theline covered structures for industry and agriculture. With more than 30-years experience, owner-operator Robert La Porte and his team use only the highest quality materials to build fabric-covered buildings or service across many different industries and for a wide variety of purposes including livestock shelters, oil drilling shelters, military shelters, indoor sports facilities, and commercial warehousing. A Horizon Structures fabric-covered building is an excellent, low-maintenance, lowcost alternative to a conventional wood or steel structure. Horizon Structures fabric-covered buildings are engineered and built to 2006 International Building Code standards. Frameworks are constructed of hot dip galvanized steel and covered with 12 to 14 oz./yard squared polyethylene fabric and 32 oz. PVC fabrics to give covered buildings the strength and durability they need to perform across all types of environments and through even the most extreme weather conditions. Horizon Structures manufactures buildings ranging in size from 26 feet to 200 feet wide that can be set on a variety of different foundations including pre-cast blocks, Jersey barriers, or T or L panels to best suit the site and the needs of customers. The company uses keder attachments to attach the fabric coverings to the steel frameworks, which lengthens the life of the building while lowering maintenance costs and protecting staff from the dangers associated with maintenance and repairs. Keder attachments are frictionless and reduce the posRobertsonTrading.qxd

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FUR BUYERS - Merchants

sibility of weak spots developing in the fabric while it is on the steel framework and, because all building maintenance is performed at ground level, there are no straps to tighten through the middle of the structure. This also greatly reduces stressors on the fabric and prevents it from wearing. Not only are fabric coverings attached to the frame with keder attachments but they are also anchored to the foundation of the building using coated steel cables. Because Horizon Structures buildings are constructed on an individual bay system, one bay at a time can be repaired on a larger structure, rather than replacing or repairing the entire fabric cover. This allows customers to avoid extra storage costs or downtime for equipment that might otherwise have to be moved. For added stability, are incorporated wind cable and wind reducer supports into the steel frameworks of the larger buildings. In addition to being easily portable and requiring less maintenance, fabric-covered buildings are warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer with greater airflow than a wood or steel building. They also allow for greater transfer of daylight, providing a well-lit interior, and reducing utility costs. Fabric buildings are also quieter, have lower project costs, and are quick to install. Horizon Structures manufactures its buildings on site in Sherwood Park and ships them nation-wide and internationally. 6

DEL

Communications Inc.

& Expediting Services

Box 360 La Ronge, SK S0J 1L0

PH: (306) 425-2080 FAX: (306) 425-3222 A.Scott Robertson Manager

142 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

DEL Communications Inc. and you,

THE KEY TO SUCCESS. We offer outstanding personal service and quality in the areas of: CREATIVE DESIGN | ADVERTISING SALES TRADE PUBLICATIONS | QUALIFIED SALES & EDITORIAL TEAM Suite 300, 6 Roslyn Road, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada R3L 0G5

w w w.delcommunications.com

1015 rue de l’Echo Val d’Or, Quebec J9P 6X6 Canada

tel: 819.824.6602

sales@wilson-mining.com

fax: 819.825.1438

www.wilson-mining.com

Raise Climber Parts & Accessories • Sales • Rentals • Repairs No matter whether you are in construction or mining, there is only one method that works successfully when driving shafts and raises in different types of rock. And it works despite all the variations to be found under different working conditions. It’s the Alimak method. In recent decades the Alimak method has been used to drive more shafts and raises than any other system. The main reason for this is the freedom it offers in choosing both inclination and size of cross section. Another reason is that you can correct the alignment of the shaft rapidly and easily to arrive right on your target.

Versa-Matic Diaphragm Pumps When it comes to dependable, efficient, cost-effective performance, our pumps deliver. Versa-Matic pumps run dry indefinitely without damage and are self-priming from a dry start. They can even run completely submerged or installed with flooded suction. The pump stops immediately if the discharge is clogged or closed, which means less power is consumed with no heat buildup and less wear. Just open the discharge and flow starts automatically. Easily installed split clamp bands offer quick assembly or disassembly for maintenance. Available in sizes from 1/2” to 3”.

Slusher Hoists & Tugger Winches We carry a complete inventory of spare parts for all sizes of Domeq and Ingersoll-Rand Slusher Hoists and Tugger Winches. New and reconditioned units available.

TIGERDALE ENTERPRISES LTD.

Have it in the Box Tigerdale Enterprises Ltd. celebrates seventh year of business

n June of 1996, in the small community of Pleasantdale, Saskatchewan, the final bell rang for the students of Pleasantdale Central School. The school was slated for demolition by the school division, however a group of local businesspersons put together a proposal to save the building and the company Tigerdale Enterprises Ltd. was formed. Tigerdale Enterprises Ltd. is not only a property owner but is also the business name for the manufacture and selling of coreboxes, core box lids, coreracks, marking blocks and surveyors lath, all used in the exploration and mining industry. Yvette Dudar, office manager says there are several factors that has made Tigerdale Enterprises so unique and viable in it’s first five years of business. “I think our ability to understand that the exploration industry is not a nine to five business and our willingness to be available after hours and weekends and holidays has certainly helped us along the way. We strive to work with the customer to ensure they receive their orders on their schedule or timeframe,” she says.

We ship Canada-wide and pride ourselves on fast friendly service. Western Style core boxes manufactured with plywood bottoms and extra screws and nails for added strength. We carry NQ, HQ, BQ, Lids, marking blocks, surveryors lath. Custom sized boxes are manufactured upon request.

Core Racks with treated wood and metal tubing - both in NQ and HQ sizing.

Enclosed Core racks protect your core from the elements .

PO Box 58 201-1st Street South Pleasantdale Saskatchewan S0K 3H0 T (306) 874-5540 | F (306) 874-5568 E tigerdale-enterprises@hotmail.com | www.tdecoreboxes.ca

144 2012-2013 Northern Prospector

Tigerdale Enterprise Ltd. Core Boxes and Racks

TIGERDALE ENTERPRISES LTD.

Tigerdale Enterprises Ltd. is not only a property owner but is also the business name for the manufacture and selling of coreboxes, core box lids, coreracks, marking blocks and surveyors lath, all used in the exploration and mining industry. And, what customers are ordering are “western style,” or plywood bottomed core boxes, constructed in a fashion that does make it a much stronger, and more durable than some competitors’ boxes. While the bulk of their business is in the NQ or HQ sizing, they also make BQ, NQ2, PQ and other custom sizes. They also manufacture several styles of core racks to house the core boxes and have provided skid trailers on occasion. Tigerdale Enterprises ships Canadawide from coast to coast.

“I believe our coreboxes have been used in just about every province and territory with perhaps the exception of PEI and Nova Scotia,” says Dudar. Staff consists of local residents, including an on-site journeyman carpenter, who completes special projects for customers. With over 20,000 square feet of usable floor space, Tigerdale Enterprises has several businesses renting floor space, including a Canadian based diamond drilling company, and a coffee

shop that serves as a town meeting place most mornings Tigerdale is very open to meeting potential clients as well. The company has a booth the Saskatchewan Geological Conference in Saskatoon every year, and invites people to stop in or come by the plant in Pleasantdale. “We here at Tigerdale feel confident that we manufacture a superior product. Our intention is to be one of those businesses that is here to stay for many years to come,” says Dudar. 6 2012-2013 Northern Prospector 145

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